Divine Happenstance
by BuggyFiction
Summary: Bella's life had always been a little strange; her flaky mother, her father in a cold weather area that she liked to avoid and a seemingly magical grandfather. Emancipated from both her parents at age 16, when her landlord's nephews come to town, her life starts to get even stranger.
1. Chapter 1

Bella and her mother Renée moved to Mystic Falls when she was 14 years old. The days that she hated her mother outnumbered the days where she loved her dearly. Renée wasn't a suitable mother, not at all. She was flighty and inconsistent. She was an artist and always forgot about the time so as soon as Bella was able to make mac and cheese, she cooked to make sure she had something to eat.

Bella cared for her mother as a mother should take care of her child but it was almost as if moving to Mystic Falls had made her mother more restless. More forgetful and certainly more spiritual. Bella never believed in anything spiritual, it was as if you were living with your head in the clouds with silly little rules such as 'no, that couch should go there to let the positive energy flow better!' and she hated it.

Her mother couldn't hold down a job and if it hadn't been for Zach Salvatore at times, they would have lost the roof over their heads a long time ago. When Bella was 16, her mother felt constricted and for some reason afraid, and wanted to move again.

Bella didn't want to move. She had her life here in Mystic Falls, she had made some friends in school and she wanted to be more rooted in a community other than moving every few years. Enough was enough. This was also a compelling argument to Renée, who reluctantly instructed Bella to emancipate herself.

Renée knew that Bella would be able to take care of herself, and while she'd always be her mother, if Bella truly didn't want to move, she'd have to emancipate. Charlie, Bella's father, was a little more difficult to get him to agree with the plan. But Bella argued that if she'd go to Forks, she'd have to take care of him, too, and that was something Bella did not want to do. She was a child. She wanted to be a normal teenager and it was time for her parents to live their own lives without having to be responsible for her.

Zach Salvatore offered the guest house on his land. He owned this big boarding house where people occasionally stayed, and the guest house was somewhat removed from it, but also close enough for Bella to come in and grab a meal whenever she wanted. The Salvatores were one of the founding families of Mystic Falls, Bella felt honored that one of those families wanted to look after her as she started her new life and learning to navigate it on her own.

She absolutely loved history and Mystic Falls had its fair share of it. She had read every book in the library and found it interesting that there had been so many animal related deaths and accidents in the past while there was nothing going on right now. In fact, Mystic Falls was the perfect little sleepy town where old people went to retire and die. But they didn't; they all went to Florida.

Animal attacks or not, Bella loved walking around in the forest to focus on her schoolwork, spotting the occasional fox here and there. They were surprisingly kind and curious to her. It was almost as if they had crawled out of their dens specially for her, but that would just be stupid, wouldn't it? To even think that she had some connection with nature would have her stoop to the level of her mother's 'spirituality'. It just wasn't possible.

She found a job waiting tables at the Mystic Grill; as most of the youth did, and she planned on sticking around, unlike most of the youth did. She liked waiting tables and observe people as it helped her with her characters for the stories she was writing. Bella had based the caretaker of an animal sanctuary on Zach Salvatore and the antagonist on Logan Fell, the news reporter from the local station WPKW9. Bella believed Fell to be foul, slippery and a moron and often not telling the truth about what he was reporting.

Tragedy struck in 2009 when the Gilberts ran off the Wickery Bridge and drowned, leaving Elena and her brother Jeremy orphans. The whole town came together in making sure the children were alright until their aunt Jenna could come and take care of them. Bella perceived Jenna to be too young for such a task, but Elena had a level head. She was a smart girl with the best taste in boyfriends. Matt Donovan was a catch. Sure, he wasn't one of the brightest, but his heart was in the right place. For Elena to have broken up with him had been selfish, probably.

Matt wasn't interested in dating Bella. Perhaps it was too soon after his breakup with Elena. Bella was dating her classmate Moritz instead, at the start of the new school year. Moritz liked it that she was without parental supervision and had her own home to be in. He was kind, goofy and a bit out of touch with the rest of the world, but he was nice. And she wasn't single in her senior year. Bella never understood the pressure of dating someone; peer pressure was a bitch, but she wasn't using Moritz. She thoroughly liked him, wild hair and all.

His family had roots in Germany and Moritz was a family name. He hated it, but Bella thought it was special; everyone had these normal names in Mystic Falls, it was good to stand out, especially considering that Moritz was a musician; he couldn't be another regular Joe. And she loved it that he was so normal, so grounded, so down to earth. Like Matt, but less of the testosterone from playing football.

When you live in a small town as Mystic Falls, new things often gain the attraction of others very fast. Such as the new kid in town; Stefan Salvatore. As he strolled down the hall of the high school, most of the girls were nearly fainting at the sight of him. Bella merely rolled her eyes and texted Zach, wondering if he and Stefan were related. She didn't get anything back for the rest of the day, but she found out that he was in Elena Gilbert's class. With Matt. And Elena's friends.

Lunch time was even worse with all those hormones flying around and even Moritz questioned her about her lack of response to Stefan. "I've got you, why should I lust after someone else?" She had smiled brightly at him and continued to listen to his playing on the guitar while she jotted down some notes in her notebook for her writing project.

Silly, maybe, but she was writing fanfiction; it was a hell of a coincidence, but Stephenie Meyer was a genius for writing Twilight. Vampires weren't real, but the names she used in the books were familiar. Like… totally familiar that Bella thought about suing the woman for using her family as a plot device. She was currently working on a crossover with Supernatural. Bella Swan; vampire hunter. Monster hunter, alongside of her hunks Dean and Sam Winchester. Oh yeah, she'd have sex with them both. But she hadn't gotten to that part yet. At this point fictional Bella was ankle deep in the sewer, armed with a flashlight stalking a vampire called Jasper, so not sexy. But real Bella was sure that by the end of the scene, the vampire would be dead.

While Bella loved writing original fiction, fanfiction was sometimes a breath of fresh air; she could use the worlds that were already established and mold it into something she liked. Writing in general made her process things. Deal with her issues with her parents and shit. Her own sexual frustrations. Killing off everyone she didn't like around her. That kind of thing.

Bella loved history, and most of her research was put in her stories. Her reviewers always praised her for being so descriptive and in depth. Detailed. So that was fun. She loved using mythology. Despite her viewing mythology as absurd stories told for generations and not real, she loved playing with it. She loved to figure out the psychology of people who did believe in myths and legends. Vampires. Werewolves. Angels. Demons.

Granted, everyone loved a spooky story every once in awhile but to truly believe? Nah. That's like saying that magic and witches were real. Yeah right.

When Bella arrived home after school and her shift at the grill, Zach met her at the guest house, saying that for the time being, it would be best if she didn't show up at the main house. His nephews were over and he wanted to have some quality family time with them. He instructed her not to invite them into her house, either, mainly because they were like strays. Invite them in once, and they'd continue to come back and hang out whenever they wanted to, eat your food and destroy your home.

While Bella thought it was a little extreme, she went along with it. After all, it was thanks to Zach that she had a roof over her head and he was her landlord. And maybe Stefan and his brother were bad boys and Zach wanted to protect her.

Bella participated in the fundraiser although she didn't like the theme of it; the girls had to be scarcely clothed, preferably in their bikini's only. See, Bella wanted to be a member of society, but to do this? What was she thinking? It was something that Zach had once told her; it was good to go out there and embarrass yourself every once in awhile, if it was for a good cause. So she and one of her classmates, Jeri, were soaping up cars together, having fun and playing with the water on the hot summer's day. It was refreshing to cool down some and while raising funds for charity, they were actually being productive.

And Bella so didn't see Bonnie Bennett stare at that car and had it go up in flames. Nope. That wasn't possible. It was a heatstroke for sure! And it wasn't Stefan Salvatore who stopped Bonnie, seemingly knowing what was going on. Heatstroke.

Bella excused herself and went home, stopping by the ice cream place on her way back and she was going to have a lie down. A couple of hours later, she went to the main house to check up on Zach, she had a feeling that he needed her for some reason. Ha, look at that, she was starting to think like her mother. She was ripe for the loony bin for sure!

Stefan opened the door, looking grief stricken and Bella could feel a knot form in her stomach. "What happened?"

"Uh…" Stefan replied, at a loss for words. "Animal attack… Uncle Zach was working on something in the cellar and I think that one of the crates had a poisonous snake in it or something. It's still on the loose."

"Bullshit," Zach's voice sounded and Bella looked around Stefan to see Zach stand there in the hallway, looking slightly shimmery. "Oh, don't get me wrong, I am dead. But it wasn't an animal attack. Don't freak out, Bella. Don't let Stefan know that you can see me. Excuse yourself and go home. I'll come to you."

"Are you okay?" Stefan asked, looking behind him as Bella had lost focus. "I know you liked Uncle Zach as much as I did…"

"Yeah…" Bella said, seemingly lost in her own thoughts before her eyes focused on his. "I… uh… I'm sorry for your loss. If you need anything you know where to find me?"

"Thanks, Bella," he smiled at her. "I appreciate that."

Bella nodded as she backed away from the door and walked back to her little house. On her way there, she was joined by Zach. "What are you?"

"Dead," he deadpanned. "It's about time you started to show your abilities," Zach continued. "For a moment I believed that it had skipped yet another generation!"

"Abilities? Wait, if you're dead, how come I can see you?"

"Shhh, indoor voice," Zach said as he followed her inside her home. "I won't be around for long, I promise. I have no intention of staying here. Well, I wish I could, but if you'd bring me back you'd only draw attention to yourself."

"What?" Surely she was still suffering from that heatstroke.

"Oh, Bella, you're so deliciously oblivious to everything that seems unnatural and while that's endearing and all, I need you to stop doing that and see what it is. You don't have to tell anybody and I can assure you that you're not going crazy," Zach continued, a sense of urgency in his voice. "Do what you do best. Observe. See things. Start believing in things, Bella, even the unexplainable things."

"Like Bonnie setting the car on fire today?"

"She did?"

"Yes."

"Then yes. She must be a witch of some sort."

"That's the rumor…" she agreed, slowly nodding. "Wait, witches are real?"

"Yes. So are vampires and werewolves and well, ghosts."

She sat down on her couch and looked at him as if he was spouting nonsense. She was hallucinating. Dreaming. This couldn't be real.

"I know what you're thinking, Bella, and I know it's a lot to take in, but trust me. Your mother was terrified of what secrets this little town holds, but she knew that you'd be strong enough to stand up against it. To witness it. She wouldn't have allowed you to emancipate if it wasn't for me telling her that I would keep you safe, so I need you to listen to me, okay?"

Bella had always known that her mother was terrified of something in this place. Bella had always brushed it off as her mother being flighty; never wanting to stay in one place for too long. Perhaps Zach was telling the truth. She slowly nodded, prompting Zach to continue.

"Your mother has a sense of danger. Her intuition about the supernatural is usually spot on and even though she can't identify the threat, she knows it's real. It's why you've moved so many times but usually to supernatural hotspots. Like Mystic Falls. You're the first in a long line of your family on your mother's side to show abilities, like communicating with me or those foxes following you around on your walkabouts."

Bella blinked at that. How did he know about the foxes?

"Bella, you're safe in Mystic Falls as long as you continue to act like you're like any other human being. Now that your abilities are manifesting, it'll be harder on you, but I implore you not to bring anyone back from the dead, even if they're begging you to do so."

"What? I can do that?"

"Maybe. I don't want you to find out without a proper guide. I would have been that guide for you but alas. Fate had other plans. You will know who the proper guide is when you meet him or her. It's likely he or she will be supernatural and very knowledgeable about witches or abnormalities like yourself."

"I'm abnormal?" Bella huffed. "Well, thanks."

"It's not good to be abnormal in the supernatural world, Bella. You need to stay safe. Stefan and Damon will allow you to stay on the property, you don't have to worry about losing your home. I just want you to continue to live your life, but now with the full knowledge that everything you see is real. It's not a trick of the mind, it's not a heatstroke and it's not a hallucination. It's about as real as the things you describe in your stories." Zach shimmered then. "I don't have very long, but if you get the chance, spend some time in the library at the house and read the journals with the true history of Mystic Falls. Not the crap the normal library gives you. Vampires are real and they are dangerous. Don't invite anyone inside your home, not even my nephews, alright?"

Bella nodded.

"Now, you're probably feeling like this is too much to take in and I'm sorry. Your first instinct is to run but please, don't. There's a reason why you wanted to live a life away from your mother, there's a reason why you wanted to stay here. I promise you that that reason will reveal itself to you, it could be in a month, two months or maybe even a year, but it will come. Until then, keep your head down and observe quietly. Learn all that you can and try not to use your abilities. Don't visit the cemetery and accidentally resurrect someone for it could be evil that you're bringing back."

She nodded again.

"And one last thing; don't have them play shitty music at my funeral."


	2. Chapter 2

It took Bella some time to wrap her mind around everything that had happened, what Zach had said and all the experiences she had brushed off as 'coincidence' or 'hallucination' before. Life was fucked up.

She kept going to school and work her shifts at the Mystic Grill, but she wasn't ready to socialize outside of that just yet. She missed the Halloween party, no big deal, really, even though Moritz really wanted to go. The day after the party he broke up with her. Also, no big deal. She had weirder things to concern herself with. It just hurt that he left her for some blonde bimbo with a bigger ass and a bigger rack.

Bella's notebook was starting to get full now. Not with fantasized shit, but with the things that she had noticed. The things she knew now and she was going to have to buy herself a new one soon. Just as she was planning on going out to buy some food, a knock was on her door and she opened it, revealing a strange woman in front of her. She had long blonde hair and was about Bella's height. "Uhm… can I help you? You passed the boarding house on the way here?"

"Hi, I'm Lexi," she smiled at Bella. "I'm a friend of Stefan's."

"Okay, hi Lexi."

"Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"No. If you can't cross the threshold on your own, you're not coming in," Bella replied, crossing her arms over her chest. She had read up on the regular vampire lore online, and with Zach's warning in the back of her mind, she hoped that the invitation thing was true.

"Cool," Lexi nodded with a smile on her face. "You know about our kind then, that's cool. So, what are you then? A witch?"

"I'm a mere human, protecting myself. Now, what can I do for you, Lexi?"

"Bullshit. You're like us! You're a part of our community!"

"Lexi, leave the poor girl alone," Damon suddenly appeared out of nowhere, like a knight in shining leather. Despite Zach's warning about his nephews - or actually his uncles, Bella couldn't help but find the elder Salvatore brother extremely attractive. Always dressed in leather… his hair… his beautiful blue eyes… it was enough to make a girl swoon.

Bella felt guilty, but not that guilty, that she had written a character looking just like him in one of her original stories and she might have used some self-insertion to pair him up with her. And have great sex. Like, the best. Seeing stars kind of sex and then fireworks. Oh yeah.

"I think she has the hots for you, Damon," Lexi smirked as she looked at him. "And I am a free person, I can go wherever I want."

"But you can't go in there, so come on, leave her alone," he countered playfully, putting an arm around her to steer her away. "Go bother Stefan. He's a miserable little thing after the whole Elena debacle."

Ah yes, Elena. The girl found out about Stefan and Damon being vampires and had demanded space; causing Stefan to feel all sorry for himself.

"Aw, but the girl looks like she's in for a party! Why not invite her over to party with us? Get drunk, drink blood… dance… drink…"

"She's off limits," Damon reminded her, looking over his shoulder to wink at Bella before marching Lexi away from the guest house. "She's our tenant, not a meal ticket."

"Generally when you're collecting rent from someone it means that they're your meal ticket," Lexi countered.

"She lives rent free, now, come on. You have to get dressed for a party," Damon looked over his shoulder again. "You're not working tonight, are you?"

Bella shook her head. "I'm going to get food and watch a movie."

"Good. Stay here. I'll make sure you get some food."

"Oh yeah?"

"I make a killer lasagna!"

"Make sure it's blood free, I hate the smell of it!"

"Oh, you little baby!"

"Yeah, you both definitely should hook up," Lexi laughed all the way to the main house. "Like an old married couple!"

A few hours later, there was a knock on the door and when Bella checked, nobody was there but a picnic basket with hot steaming lasagna in it, a couple of books and a note from Damon saying that she'd enjoy these books and that should she have any questions that she could send him a message.

Damon's lasagna tasted phenomenal, and the books Damon had given her looked like journals; perhaps the journals that Zach had mentioned. She was careful not to drip any lasagna on the books as she read and she wasn't surprised that the true history of Mystic Falls, the supernatural history, was close to the one they were being taught in school or during every Founders party, but then with a supernatural twist and no animal attacks.

The first book was mainly about vampires and witches, and by the time she'd read through it, she'd polished off all the lasagna Damon had made. Bella hadn't realized she was that hungry. Or perhaps his lasagna was indeed that good.

When she returned from her kitchen with a glass of wine, shimmery Lexi was standing at the table, peeking into the journal that lay open. "What the fuck," Bella muttered under her breath.

"Nice place you have," Lexi grinned as she looked up to Bella. "And I totally confirmed that you are supernatural. You're a medium!"

Yeah, that would work. "If it decides to work, yes," she replied, downing her glass of wine in one go. "Who killed you?"

"Damon," Lexi shrugged. "If only I could come back from the dead and return the favor. I'm older, you know. I'm a lot stronger than he is. He was only able to take me down because I was being shot at."

"Uhuh."

"It's a good thing you have that rule of not being able to cross your threshold means not entering your home. Damon is dangerous."

"Okay," Bella sighed. "But he made me a damn good lasagna and he's my landlord so yeah, nothing you can really do about it. Anything else? Do you want me to pass something on to Stefan?"

"Nah," Lexi waved away Bella's words. "I just came here to check to see if you were telling the truth and you were. And now it's time for me to move away from the portal and go live out the rest of my existence on the Other Side."

She didn't know what to say about that. "Have fun?"

"Thanks!" Lexi smirked before she winked out like a candle.

~o.0.o~

A couple of weeks later, the school had their annual decade dance and unfortunate for Bella, her friend Jeri wasn't allowing her to skip this one, too. Bella thought she looked ridiculous in her fifties outfit and there was no way that she was going to dance. Bella was going to have punch, be around for maybe 30 minutes and then leave again. She'd been in the middle of doing homework and revising after having ignored it in favor of reading journals chronicling the supernatural world in Mystic Falls, and she didn't want to fail her exams.

Bella had expected Stefan to be there, but she was surprised that Damon came with him and she watched him approach Bonnie Bennett. Oh, Bella knew about the hateful relationship between the two, Damon had told her all about it, and decided that Bonnie could use the night off, so she intercepted him. "Hey, wanna dance?" Bella said as she looped her arm through his and started to pull him away.

"Well, actually, I-"

"You can skip torturing Bonnie for one night, Damon," she replied gently, smiling up at him. "Fair warning though, I don't usually dance."

"Then let's make this short then," Damon said as he took the lead. "Because I'm not really here for the dancing or the chaperoning."

"Really?"

"Really," Damon nodded as he kept his eyes on the crowd. When Bella looked around, she saw that Stefan was doing the same as he danced with Elena. "Something bad is afoot. I half expected you to stay at home so you'd be safe, but no, you just had to attend the dance."

"Blame Jeri," she chuckled and pointed at her best friend, who was now dancing with Moritz. "Oh, that… bitch! She's seeing Moritz now?"

"Your ex boyfriend?"

"Yeah!" Bella felt angry. "She's my best friend and she's dancing with my ex boyfriend. I hope that's all they're doing and not…" Her eyes grew wide when she saw them kiss. "Oh, she's dead."

Damon laughed darkly and turned Bella around so she didn't have to watch her best friend kiss her ex boyfriend. "Just say the word and I'll use her as my pet for awhile. Young blood, so delicious."

"I doubt you'd have to compel her for that. No, she'll only enjoy it," Bella sighed, shaking her head. "No, it's fine. Jeri's more exciting than I am. She has a better ass and better tits…"

"And Moritz has a new girl every week…" Damon added playfully. "Wasn't he dating a blond bombshell earlier?"

"Shut up," Bella muttered and stomped on his foot. "So how much closer are you to freeing your Katherine?"

Damon smiled widely. "Close."

"And you still think it's a good idea to free her?"

"Yep," Damon replied as he spun Bella around. "Alright, enough dancing. You've shown your face, you're going home. Don't want you to end up as an accidental snack."

"Oh, vampire business," Bella cooed as she allowed Damon to escort her to her car. "Spooky!"

~o.O.o~

In his quiet moments, Damon liked to sit on her front porch with her door wide open while she sat inside. Both drinking alcohol or tea or eat whatever he came to offer. Simply to talk. Mostly about the disappointment of not having found Katherine in the tomb underneath old Fell's Church, where he believed she'd have been with the other 26 vampires Guiseppe, his father, had locked them in. But that hadn't been the case. Katherine was still lost. Maybe dead, even. Bella knew he was hurting bad, and it was likely that he was acting out around his friends and family because of this.

At some point, he slipped her a folder and when she looked inside, she found plane tickets and hotel reservations in her name. "What's this?"

"You need to leave town for a while and both Stefan and I are too preoccupied to look out for you."

Bella was confused. "I have school. I have a job. I have exams starting soon."

"Don't worry, I'll take care of that. It's only until it's safe. You're still new at all of this and you're obviously still trying to make this part of life your own," he pointed at the folder. "They're tickets to Orlando, Florida, in case you're wondering. Disney world!"

"Damon…"

"No, don't you Damon me, Bella Swan. You're going away until it's safe or until you can protect yourself. Just because they can't enter your home, doesn't mean they can't take you while you're wandering around in the forest or in town," he then let out a dark chuckle. "I've been trying to get Stefan to drink human blood for years and he's finally fallen off the wagon. That sure taught me, he's a fucking lunatic now that he's off bunnies."

"You don't trust your brother?"

"Not right now, no. So please, go have fun in Florida. Soak up the sun. Do things in complete freedom. I'll let you know when it's safe to come back."

"And what if that takes too long and I miss my exams?"

"Congratulations, you graduated high school with flying Aces!" Damon cheered.

She huffed. "I think you're overreacting," she pushed the folder back. "I'm staying, I'll be more careful but I'm staying. Your uncle… nephew, whatever told me to stop running. So I'm not running away for danger. I'm staying."

"Disney."

"I'll go to Disney when I've done my exams, how's that?"

"Fine, but if you get killed, it'll not be my fault!"

Bella grinned as she looked around the doorpost to face him. "Deal."

~o.O.o~

As it turned out, Bella didn't have anything to fear from the new, old vampires in town. It was Stefan who looked like a pressure cooker bomb, ready to go off at any time, and she feared for his immediate circle; Elena and Bonnie. Not that it mattered that much to Bella, but she didn't want to miss her entertainment during lunch breaks at school. Damon informed her that Stefan was doing better after they had managed to wean him off human blood cold turkey.

It was likely that wasn't going to last.

When Founder's Day came around, and a quite special one at that, celebrating 150 years of Mystic Falls, Bella didn't quite feel like it. It was almost as if the entirety of Mystic Falls had a shroud over them, suffocating. As if something was coming. Something bad. So she didn't go and instead shopped for a couple of days of supplies and stayed in her house.

There was a big fire. There were accidents. While Bella could see on her days out and about that life went on as normal, she could also see who was connected to all the happenings, people acting strange or looking around skittish.

Damon came to her door at the end of February with a big smile on his face. "We've got werewolves."

"Really?"

"Uhuh, Lockwood."

"Tyler?"

"And his uncle."

"Cool," Bella grinned. "Can I see?"

"Hell no, it's too dangerous for you but I brought you a book so you can read up on them. Also, Caroline is a vampire and Katherine is back but she's a bitch so…"

"That sucks."

"Hmm…" Damon nodded. "On a sadder note, Stefan nearly died and the mayor has died. There's a wake today. Are you coming?"

Bella thought for a moment. She wasn't sure about it, if the Lockwoods were supernatural, it could prove to be a disaster. On the other hand, werewolves were animals, right? Wouldn't they take to her like the foxes did in the forest? It was best to remain at a distance. She didn't quite like Tyler. "While I would love to pay my respects, I don't think it's a good idea. Besides, I have a shift at the Grill. But I'll send some flowers."

"I told you, you should have taken me up on my offer for you to go to Disney."

"I'm not running, Damon."

"No, but you're hiding. It's the same thing," he pointed out before running off.

Out of frustration, she slammed her door shut. He made it sound as if she was enjoying herself, locking herself away like this. She knew that werewolves were the natural enemies of vampires so why was Damon so upset about this? If she'd somehow attracted the werewolves, they could go off on him and he could die. Was that what he wanted?

Bella booted up her computer and opened skype. Maybe her friend Trashpanda was online so they could chat while she was reading the lastest book that Damon had given her. Trashpanda was a female, Bella's age, and she lived in New Orleans. Unlike Bella, Trashpanda had a lot of issues with her family but for some reason she couldn't get away from them. College was her way out and even though she was planning to attend the University of New Orleans, they had dorms and she was going to live there.

Until then, Bella kept her spirits up and they both discussed their writing together. They'd been talking for a couple of weeks now and Bella hadn't learned Trashpanda's real name just yet. Which was fine, seeing as Bella's nickname was CeilingCat. Oh, there were worst names she could have come up with, but that was the freedom of the internet, wasn't it? To be something you're not. Bella liked talking to Trashpanda about random stuff that was not related to what Bella's life had become. Tell each other stupid jokes.

Unfortunately, her friend wasn't online so Bella settled in in front of her computer and read Damon's book. By nightfall, she decided to go to the main house to return some of these books. It wasn't as if she needed them, and she could use it as an excuse to find a bottle of wine or something. She had forgotten to pick up something on her grocery run because she was distracted.

As she closed the door of her home, she could hear MSN messenger going crazy with alerts, but that just had to wait. Bella was already outside and on a mission. Bella opened the front door to the Salvatore home and nearly dropped her books in shock when she saw Damon sitting on top of Elena, his hand around her neck, fiercely kissing her. "Damon!"

In a panic, Damon looked up to see Bella standing there. "It's not what you think," he said like a deer caught in headlights.

"Oh, threesome!" Elena giggled as she pushed Damon off of her and started to circle Bella like a predator.

Not Elena.

"The fuck?" Bella carefully watched Not Elena circle her before looking at Damon. "What the hell!"

Damon sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "Bella, meet Katherine."

"Katherine?"

"Hi," Katherine smiled at her as she kept her eyes on Bella. "Oh, she's special, Damon, I can smell it."

"Katherine as in… the Katherine you spent the last century and a half lusting over? Missing? The one who's hurt you by leaving you?"

"Yep."

"And she looks like Elena."

"Did I miss that out? Elena looks like Katherine," Damon pointed to the door. "I'll explain to my best of my abilities later. Out."

"You're going to make her leave?" Katherine pouted. "Aw, Damon! Threesomes are fun!"

"Bella's a tenant and off limits," Damon said as he positioned himself between Katherine and Bella. "Good night, Bella," he said with his back towards her. "Talk to you soon."

She wasn't even going to fight him on this. From the stories he had told her about Katherine, Bella knew that she was bad news and really couldn't understand his infatuation with her. Then again, according to him and Stefan Katherine was a manipulative bitch, so what was going on?

As she got into her house, messenger was still making too much noise for her liking and when she slipped behind her computer, Bella had to laugh.

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Did you choke on your kitty nibbles or something? You can't be online and not be here. Where are you? Did you get eaten by a dog? Hello? FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Relax. I had to step out for a moment._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _And do what? Jesus. Don't be online and not be here, okay?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Okay, Mom. What's so urgent anyway?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Nothing. Just bugging you for an update on your Twilight/Supernatural fic. Holy shit, you've been going at it for so long and it keeps getting better and better! You have some creative brain, yo!_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Just about to write the last chapter. Not too fond of the story right now. Too much going on. Too… complicated._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Or too close to the truth?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Seriously, this again? Trashy, vampires aren't real. People just love the idea of it, hence why Supernatural and Twilight are attracting so many viewers. I mean, if we have to believe the stories, New Orleans is like a hotbed for supernatural creatures._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _And yet, Sam and Dean never visit us! *pout*_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Funny. Nah. I've told everything that was needed to tell with the story and I really need to focus on my school shit._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I thought you were an excellent student?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Who studies hard for that honor, thank you very much. History teacher has slipped into mythology now. Werewolves._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Sounds interesting. For something that's not real, of course. Greek Gods and Goddesses for me. Boring. I mean, you're right, if we have to believe the stories, New Orleans is a hotbed for supernatural creatures, why can't we have your teacher and learn about the cool stuff?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Maybe because you can just walk into a store and get a book or a future reading by a 'medium'. Unlike small town me!_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _You think you're so funny! Anyway, I have to go. Mom's complaining that I'm using the internet. She wants to call grandma… which will likely resort into some fighting but eh. Beggars can't be choosers. Talk to you later! Xx_


	3. Chapter 3

A couple of weeks later, Bella really hoped that TrashPanda was around to talk to her, mainly because she did live in a rich environment of the Supernatural and she wanted to check on a story that Damon had told her about the Sun and Moon curse. Surely there would be an answer in New Orleans?

Bella stayed out of Mystic Falls trouble, she merely wanted to make sure that the curse was what it was and nothing special. Nothing that could harm the Salvatores, after all, Zach Salvatore may have started with her protection, it was his nephews - or uncles - that carried on, without even knowing what she was.

Hell, even Bella didn't know what she was, but her research told her that she wasn't a medium but some sort of necromancer and that was dangerous. She was dangerous. If she could raise the dead, she had to be careful. Maybe that was why she wanted to make sure that the curse wouldn't have an effect on her, either.

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _You here?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Sup?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _What do you know about the Sun and Moon curse in relation to vampires?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Research?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Totally. History teacher has moved on to the Aztecs now. Seeing as you're in the big city and all… maybe you could help me write this paper?_

Bella didn't like the silence. TrashPanda wasn't talking for a long time while she was online so to kill some time, and not to sound too pushy, Bella made herself something to eat.

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Okay, so legend tells us that vampires and werewolves are real - but they're not buuuut let's assume that they are. Long time ago, the vampires and werewolves were fighting and were killing innocent lives while doing so. So the Aztecs created a curse that would allow the vampires to walk only at night and the wolves to only transform at full moon._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _I know that. I mean, I got as far as that. Vampires are the werewolves' natural prey. Their bite can kill._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Right! So that's the curse. However, rumor goes that the curse is fake. It appeared out of nowhere in many cultures at the same time and some people say that it was merely a scary horror story to tell._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _You're saying a bunch of guys wanted to fuck with believer's heads?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Yeah, I guess so. I mean, you can break the curse, or so they say, with a Moonstone, a vampire and a werewolf sacrifice and the blood of a doppelganger. Seriously, for a tiny curse like that? Something else might be at play. Something bigger. More dangerous._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Like what?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I don't know. A hybrid, maybe? They're extremely rare in lore, so maybe it's all connected. I don't know. Nobody is telling me anything here, because it's not real. I only know what I know because I like connecting the dots, just like you._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _A hybrid? Okay, so for arguments sake and to make my paper even better (and me teacher's pet for making it exciting!); let's assume that everything's real because my teacher likes that, and let's assume that everything needed is available in one town but the hybrid. What's the worse that could happen?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _The hybrid breaking his curse and to be able to make more hybrids? I don't know. He could become more powerful because both of his sides are free. You're a writer. Use your imagination and good luck on that paper. Let me know what your teacher thinks, this is certainly out of the box thinking, well done!_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Thanks._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Oh, and I did a paper on Doppelgangers last semester. The research I did was that they're always hell bent on destroying the other's lives by manipulation and nasty things. So if you need to see it as real; make them the bad guy in all of it._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _LOL. Thanks! I'll have this paper written in no-time now! Back to the books!_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Back to the book cave! Xx_

Bella continued to live her life after the chat with TrashPanda. She went to school, listened intently when her teacher Saltzman spoke, observed the rest of the gang, but the funny thing was that they weren't spending that much time in school anymore, and it wasn't raising any eyebrows from the faculty.

And wow, did she want to stab Moritz' eyes out with a blunt object. He had gone from being a dork to being Mr. Popular and she suspected that he was on something. Or maybe turned. Damon and Stefan hadn't turned anyone - to her knowledge, Caroline was an accident - so was this Katherine's fault? Why would she allow him to walk in daylight? No, vampire was out of the question. Maybe he was a werewolf, an accidental bite from Tyler or his uncle. Moritz was a pig.

Bella followed him out of school, she didn't even know why, really. She and Moritz hadn't been dating for long and they had separated for even longer, but she hated his guts. There was a fire, a rage, inside of her and he needed to pay for his sluttiness. For his inability to treat women like royalty, like the goddesses they are. He was a pig. A pig!

"Bella! Hey, focus on me," Damon's voice suddenly sounded as he grabbed her tightly, turning her around and making her focus on him.

Where did he come from. "What?"

"You can't just turn people into animals, Bella," he said as he spun her around again and pointed at the pig, Moritz' clothes were hanging loosely around him. "No matter how much you hate them, you can't do this."

"I didn't do that!"

"Yes, you did. I saw it with my own eyes. You're lucky nobody else did," Damon scolded her as he let go of her and helped the pig out of the clothes before throwing them into the bin. "Now he's just a pig."

"He is," she replied stunned. "I did that?"

"Yep. Let's get you home. You're done for the day," Damon put his arm around her and started to lead her to his car. "You have to be careful, Bella. Wasn't that what Zach had said? Elijah is in town. He's a very old vampire and he has a nose for special things like you. Do you want a big target painted on your back?"

"What if he's the one who can tell me what I am?"

"Trust me, he's not. He's a prick," he opened the passenger door for her so she could get in and drove her home in silence, his mind obviously preoccupied with other things.

"You know, how am I supposed to learn and observe when you don't want me in on things?"

"Such as?"

"Katherine. The Tomb. The werewolves. The curse. Elijah."

Damon only smirked as he stopped the car in front of the boarding house. "How am I supposed to keep you safe while I'm busy dealing with the other stuff?"

Bella grumbled as she slammed the door closed. "What if the curse isn't for breaking the werewolf curse? What if it's used for other things?"

"Like what?"

"More dangerous things, I don't know."

"You're right, you don't know. I do. Now, go home before you turn me into a pig."

"You're already a pig," Bella rolled her eyes at him before she walked over to her home.

"Oink, oink!"

~o.O.o~

"So, in my previous class, I was told we'd been covering the sixties because of the upcoming Decade dance," Mr. Saltzman announced as he started to teach the class. Bella thought he looked different, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. "It made me want to fail myself. I did so poorly! Now, what were we discussing in this class?"

"You were supposed to hand us our papers back, Mr. Saltzman," Jeri piped up with a giggle. "Props to you for finally becoming the absentminded professor!"

"Right, of course," Saltzman said, furiously blushing as he pretended to rummage through the drawers and the papers on the desk. "Ah! Found them!" He handed the first few ones to the ones in the first row before his eye fell on something. "A paper on the Sun and Moon curse?"

"Aztec," Bella replied, cocking her head. "Don't you remember? I wanted to write about something other than the builders of modern society and tackle their beliefs. You said to go for it?"

A fake smile of recognition appeared on his face. "Of course. I uh… I haven't managed to grade it yet so once everyone has their papers and their grades, you can all do something fun for the rest of the hour while I discuss this with you."

"Teacher's pet," Jessica coughed as she clutched her paper and walked out of class.

"Loser."

"Nerd."

More was said, but Bella decided to ignore it. As always. Saltzman would never have announced this so publicly. He was definitely wrong. And she was alone. Luckily he was more intrigued with the words in her paper, so maybe she could disappear. Getting up from her chair, she started to make her way to the door, slowly.

"Isabella, please," he said as he pointed to a chair. "You have quite the imagination," he smiled at her, leaning against the desk. "Do you think this could be true?"

"Of course not," Bella huffed. "You and I both know that the Aztecs weren't that superstitious. It's just a fairytale."

"Quite," he said amused. "I love it. I'll give you an A, but I suppose that doesn't come as a surprise to you."

"Can I go now?"

"Can I run a theory by you? Since we know the same people?"

"Do we?"

"Damon and Stefan? I saw you get out of Damon's car this morning when he dropped you off. You and I both know they're vampires and that they've been after this curse for quite some time trying to save Elena. Don't play dumb with me, Isabella."

"I'm not. I'm not involved in any of that."

"Then why the extensive research on a curse, that according to you, doesn't exist?"

"Because I do that. I tell stories."

"What if it were real? There is no Sun and Moon curse, only one curse, meant to bind something much more powerful than your ordinary vampire or werewolf?"

Definitely not Saltzman. Bella sighed as she tiredly ran a hand through her hair. "I don't care. Damon told me about the Original, Klaus, yesterday and for all I care it's his curse to break. I'm not involved in their problems."

"But what if Klaus kills them?"

"Kinda their own fault, isn't it? For finding Elena? For getting to know her and setting things in motion?" Bella chuckled darkly. "I mean, I've warned Damon countless of times to just walk away, but he can't. Because Elena looks like Katherine and Katherine is a bitch. For all I care Klaus kills Stefan because Stefan is barely hanging on by a thread and please, a vampire that feeds on animals? What kind of vampire is that? You know as well as I do how Stefan was when he was drinking human blood a few months ago. He's a danger."

Alaric smirked then. "What of Damon?"

"Damon's nice. He pretends he's an asshole who doesn't care but he's nice. Kind. Warm. I feel privileged to see that side of him that he rarely shows others." She couldn't remember if she told Rick about herself, probably not. Damon, and in a way Stefan, were the only ones who knew that she was something but what was still a mystery to all of them. "Damon's a victim of Stefan's bullying and the sole reason he's a vampire in the first place. If it were up to me, Stefan would have been dead a long time ago but hey, I'm a mere mortal and you're too much of a wuss to kill him."

"He's the brother of my best friend."

"Is Damon your best friend, though?" Bella said as she got up from her chair and walked over to Alaric, staring him right in the face. "Because I don't think you're Alaric Saltzman."

"How so?"

"Your aura. Good day," Bella said as she snatched her paper out of Not Rick's hands and walked out of the classroom before turning around and peeking her head around the door. "And for your information, this wasn't my paper; this was research for Rick," she said before turning around and heading out of school. She could feel her heart rate return back to normal before she burst out in a fit of laughter. She had sounded just like her mother. What was the world coming to?

No, but seriously, there was a dark shimmer or muddled colors around Saltzman that had alerted her, something she hadn't seen before. Was she now going to have to read up on auras?

She stopped by the groceries store as she walked home from school; not wanting to bother Damon in having to pick her up. She wasn't even sure why he dropped her off in the first place; Bella could have easily taken her own car.

Mystic Falls still felt different; something was coming and nothing would be the same again. Then again, she turned Moritz into a pig, what the fuck was up with that? She still couldn't wrap her head around it. Bella had done some digging on the internet, googling for transformations from a human into an animal but all she got was shapeshifting; like werewolves, dream interpretations and anime and that wasn't it, was it? She'd forced the shapeshifting upon someone else.

What freaked her out the most was that she was intrigued by it, and didn't feel any remorse. At all.

When she arrived at her house, she was well aware of the amount of crows that were following her the moment she crossed the driveway of the boarding house. "Overkill much, Damon?" She muttered under her breath and stopped in her tracks when she saw this guy standing at her front door. He was immaculately dressed and looking around, curiously. "Can I help you? The Salvatores live in the big house!"

"Oh, I'm well aware of that, thank you," the man turned to face her, a pleasant smile on his face. "Do you live here?"

"I do, but I don't remember ordering something and it usually arrives at the big house so…" Bella readjusted the bag in her hand so she could use it as a weapon if needed and pushed past the man, opening her door and getting in. If this guy was a vampire, and he likely was, then she was safer inside. "Again, can I help you?"

"I'm curious," the man replied. "I'm an historian and I was merely looking around on the Salvatore property as it's old and perhaps I could find something of interest. This guest house isn't on any document."

"You're not an historian," Bella flicked on her computer. If TrashPanda was on, she could type help or something. Bella's phone was dead and couldn't send a text to Damon. "I know you're a vampire and if you're wondering why two vampires allow a human to live on their land, well, you got me there. I have no idea, but the rent is great."

The man chuckled at that. "You remind me of someone I've met a while back, her name was…" the man paused, as if he was trying to remember. "Renée Higginbotham. Using sarcasm as a defense."

"You know my mom?"

"Ah! You must be her daughter, Isabella."

Bella narrowed her eyes on him. "Bella and how do you know my name?"

"My family and I have been keeping an eye on yours for a very long time. What a coincidence that I happened to run into you, in Mystic Falls of all places."

"Why have you been keeping an eye on my family?"

"I have my suspicions about your family after an encounter with your mother and your father," the man replied simply. "The male line of the Higginbothams is quite fascinating and nothing is known of your father's side of the family. Tell me, is your grandfather still alive?"

"Grandpa Nate died when I was 18."

"Interesting…"

"You're creeping me out."

"Oh, not to worry, Isabella. I mean you no harm."

Bella snorted. "Yeah, no offense, buddy, but one of my landlords said the same and he tried to take a bite out of me too."

The man's lip curled in disdain. "The Salvatores have been nothing but a thorn in my side since my arrival here in Mystic Falls. Was it Damon?"

"You're going to stay away from Damon or…"

"Or what?" the man took a step closer to the door, but Bella was fairly certain he wouldn't be able to enter. "Instead of listening to me, they do the complete opposite of what I have said. They're making things harder for themselves, and, for myself. My patience is wearing thin. I'd rather spend my time with more intellectual beings than them, but alas. I shall punish Stefan then. You will have nothing to fear."

"I don't want you to do anything," Bella shot at him. "I'm quite capable of taking care of myself."

"Are you?"

"Yes," she replied as she pointed that the pig that had come to join them on Bella's porch. She had to stifle a grin as someone, likely Damon, had dressed it up in an ugly sweater. "That used to be a boy. Unless you want to turn into what he is, I suggest you'll leave me alone. I've had enough to deal with today and I'm tired."

"You're a witch."

"Sure, whatever," Bella shrugged. "I want you to stop nosing around my family, too. It's creepy that there are beings as old as yourself stalking regular human beings. Life is hard enough without having to think about the supernatural aspect of it all. Leave me alone," she then took a deep breath to calm herself. "Go stalk Elena or something. She's the doppelganger. Far more interesting."

"Elena and I have an understanding, it's just that her protectors are idiots."

"Not my problem. That's theirs," she countered. "Should I see you again, in front of my house, leering, I will alert my landlords and I will have you forcibly removed."

He smirked then. "I'd love to see them try. Have a nice day, Miss Bella. Thank you for the entertainment that I needed today."

Bella rolled her eyes and slammed the door shut before starting to unpack her bag of groceries. She then put her phone on the charger and called Damon, telling him about some stalker on their property and in front of her home, seemingly knowing a lot about her family.

" _You didn't antagonize him, did you?"_

"I was my usual cheery self."

" _Damnit, Bella, that was Elijah. He doesn't like to be insulted."_

"I didn't insult him! Jeez!"

" _Did you disrespect him?"_

"He disrespected me first by showing up here and started to ask questions. I guess we're even. Now, just a head's up, I don't think Alaric is Alaric."

" _No, he's Klaus."_

Bella groaned as she sat down on her couch. "What are you up to? Do you need my help?"

" _Nope, just stay where you are. When it's all over, I'll come to you."_

"Damon!"

" _Not up for discussion, Bella. I promise we'll be fine. And, if not, the deed to our house is in the study. All you have to do is sign it and it's yours. It'll keep you safe until you figure things out. But don't worry, I promise we won't die or anything. That would just be stupid."_

TrashPanda wasn't around that night and Bella had to admit that she was a little scared when she could smell smoke coming out of the woods. For some reason, she felt the need to sit on her porch all night with tea and hot chocolate and just watch. Listen to the sounds around her. Listen to human screams in the distance until they died out. Some foxes had burrowed underneath the porch, Bella could hear them whimper in fear. Other than feeling slightly uneasy, Bella felt at peace; it was a beautiful full moon out and she could feel the weirdness of the day roll straight off her back.

When morning came, she was still awake and was fascinated by a wolf approaching her on the porch. There was fresh blood around his muzzle and Bella tried to remain calm; she wasn't an idiot. Full moons meant werewolves but the sun was up now so if this was a real werewolf, he'd have turned already. No, this was a real wolf and it was beautiful.

"Hello," she greeted the wolf calmly. "Aren't you gorgeous?" She slid off her chair to lower herself to the ground and held out her hand to the wolf. "I mean you no harm. It's okay."

The wolf touched her hand with his nose and breathed in her scent before coming in closer, laying down next to her and put its face in her lap. "Alright, you can take a nap," Bella said quietly as she scratched the wolf between his ears.

Weren't wolves vicious in the wild? Even in zoos? What was she, really? Snow White? Dr. Doolittle? Either way, she was amazed and allowed herself to bask in the specialness of it all.


	4. Chapter 4

Bella had shot herself in the foot by being distracted by other things than making sure she could get into a college. She had aced her exams and, upon Damon's insistence, had spent two weeks in Florida over the summer. It was great to be surrounded by fluffy stuff, by Disney and even seeing her mom for a day or two.

Oh, as much as Bella wanted to talk to her mother about what was going on in her life, she knew she couldn't. Her mother would get scared, but Bella could tell that Renée saw that things had changed within Bella. She wouldn't press the matter and have Renée lead the conversation and unfortunately it never strayed in the supernatural area of their lives.

It had been the first time since Grandpa Nate's funeral that they saw each other and spending time on the beach was nice for the both of them. Bella confessed to her mother that she was worried about her future, seeing as she hadn't applied for college. Renée encouraged her to work more at the Mystic Grill and take the year off, mainly because she had worked so hard over the last few years and deserved a break.

Not opposed to the idea, Bella returned to Mystic Falls with a spring in her step and then found out that Stefan had skipped town with Klaus, that he was back on feeding off of humans and that Damon was looking for him. Family. Pain in the butts.

And why was it a good idea to celebrate Elena's 18th birthday at the Salvatore home? Bella hated the noise coming from the house, who knew that Elena had so many friends? She sighed when there was a knock on the door and got up to open it. "Stefan," she said surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I need you to come with me."

He sounded like Stefan. But this was Stefan on human blood. He had already tried to bite her before, what had changed? "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Come with me, or I will burn this house down and I don't care if you're in it." Stefan reached for her and pulled her out of the house, his hand over her mouth to stop her from screaming and sped off with her. The experience was surreal; she could feel every movement, she could feel Stefan's strength and she could feel how the wind cut into her skin.

The trip was over before she knew it and she found herself suspended from the ceiling of what looked like a TV studio. She was tightly bound, and she could see the ground from where she was. She'd be dead if she'd hit the floor. "Damnit, Stefan!" Bella was afraid of heights, this wasn't going to end well, at all.

"Shut up, Bella," Stefan's voice sounded from below. "I can't compel you to be quiet, but if you know what's good for you, you're not saying another word."

Bella's heart was pounding so hard that she thought it was going to burst out of her chest. Her lungs were compressing and she couldn't breathe properly. "I'm afraid of heights!" she managed to cry out. What if the ropes she was bound with would break? Tear under hear weight? She'd fall to her death and she really didn't want to die.

"Not my problem!"

"Stefan!" She could feel something sharp tear into her and lodge itself into her body. It hurt and maybe it was a good thing that she couldn't move her arms to pull it out, but for some twisted reason, the new pain was a distraction from her fear of heights. She could breathe again but with every breath, she could feel the object work against her skin. Blood was coming out of her, she could smell it.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but she could hear someone enter the building. The silhouette told her it was Damon. What was Stefan up to? Bella whimpered against her restraints, she had started to feel light headed and was sure that she was going to die.

"Stefan," Damon's voice sounded.

"Hello, brother."

"You don't write. You don't call."

"Need you to stop following me," Stefan said calmly before shrugging. "Causing some problems."

"With who, Klaus? I'm supposed to care what he thinks?"

"What you're supposed to do is let me go."

The voices were distant now, Bella couldn't hear what they were saying as the world spun out of focus and she passed out.

She came to on her porch. Her head was in someone's lap and there were a multitude of blankets over her, but she felt fine, or so she believed. Bella opened her eyes and looked up at Damon, confused. "What happened?" Oh, her voice was gone. Or her mouth was dry.

"Stefan wanted to make a point," Damon said bitterly as he helped her to sit up. "If I keep coming after him, he'll kill everyone. He made me choose between you and Andi and damnit, why do you have to be so special, Bella? I had a lot of fun with Andi and it's your fault that she's dead now. What am I supposed to do now?"

"Not to blame me for one," Bella looked down on her shirt and saw the imprint of a knife surrounded by some blood. Her blood.

"I had to feed you my blood or you would have died," Damon said dismissively. "Can't you just figure out what you're supposed to do and leave?"

"No, I'm sorry, Damon, I can't. And I'm sorry that Andi's dead, but you know what? From now own, I'll be the princess in the tower and not open my door for everyone while you'll be my keeper and bring me food and water every single day," she replied angrily, getting to her feet. "If he doesn't want you to find him, then don't! If Elena's so desperate to find him, then have her look for him. Start living your own life for once!"

"Says the princess in the tower."

"Who turned a boy into a pig," she warned him as she opened the door. "Maybe I should move. Live above the Mystic Grill or something. There's space."

"It's not safe!"

"And you wanted me to leave!"

"You're so infuriating!"

"So are you!" Bella went inside and slammed the door shut before heading straight to the bathroom to clean up. What the fuck. She was supposed to stay out of all of this. How could she have been so stupid?

Dressed in her comfy pyjamas and fuzzy slippers, Bella poured herself a big glass of whiskey to stave off the jitters as she turned on her computer. She needed someone friendly to talk to and she hoped that her friend was online. Before she could even look for her, a message popped up.

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Yo!_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Hi! It's been a whiskey kind of day, hope you don't mind, but I plan on getting drunk._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I'll join you. What happened?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _I have a great friend but his brother is a jerk right now. He's in cahoots with some nut who strolled into town a few months ago and they're traveling now. This brother came back to town to make sure his brother would stay clear and used me to do it._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Seriously?! Are you okay? Do I need to call the cops or something?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Nah, I'm a little sore and spooked but I'm in one piece thanks to my friend. It was just very scary and something I thought wouldn't happen to me because I keep my nose out of things._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Sounds like you're involved with the mafia or a secret society if you say it like that._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _LOL. I just want to get drunk and for you to cheer me up, but I suppose secret society comes close._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Ohhh! Are you like… in a cult?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _You've known me for years, Trashie. Wouldn't you have known by now if I was? How's college?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I decided not to go. I'm actually on the move a lot these days. My boyfriend got me a laptop and we're playing hide and seek cross country with some friends of his. Quite fun, really. One of them is a complete nut, though. He's lucky he's still breathing._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Now, what did I tell you about your anger?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I know, I know. I can't help myself. Hey, how about instead of hurting my jerk, I'll come over and hurt your friend's brother instead?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _You don't have to do that. It's fine._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Or, you could come out and join us._

Now, that was tempting. Bella didn't fancy working at the Mystic Grill every single day for another year until she could apply for college and she hadn't made any headway regarding to whatever the hell she was. And despite everything, staying in her house observing and learning finally had become boring, too.

She wasn't going away because she was running, but because she felt like it. Besides, she could use a little bit of normality in her life. Damon had taught her some self defense moves, so she didn't need him. Why not?

But for some reason she was hesitant. Trashie hadn't been that forthcoming over the years and now she wanted to meet up and have fun? Just like that?

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _You still there?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Yeah, just thinking, that's all._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Why? What's the worry? We've been friends for so long, Cat. Would be nice to see you face to face. Enjoy some freedom. Like… oh, skinny dipping, get drunk and dance around a bonfire!_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _That sounds like a lot of fun, yes. I certainly have the time but… I can't help but wonder if TrashPanda's account got hacked and taken over by someone else._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Paranoid much? I like it._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Well?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Like yourself, I am part of some sort of secret society. But I don't have to hide anymore. Look, I get it, if you're worried about your safety, then I completely understand. I give you my word that you'll be safe. Who knows? You might learn some new things along the way!_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Fine. Where do we meet up?_

Bella couldn't believe she was going to do this. Damon had been so kind to her and keeping her safe, but she needed to escape this madness a bit longer. Disney had been nice, but she needed to get out more. Make connections. Be connected. Whatever. And if Trashie's account _was_ hacked by a serial killer, then so be it. At least Bella would have lived a little.

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _We're currently leaving Chicago._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _That's an 11 hour drive!_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Oh, well, we're going to drive for 11 hours to a little town called Mystic Falls, have you heard of it?_

Fuck.

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _You're kidding me._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _No, the woods are luscious and I hear the people are friendly. How far of a drive would that be for you? It's in Virginia, close to Lynchburg._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _I can do that easily._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Good. Now, we're going to have to deal with some business first, but how about we meet up in two days? Let's say… their restaurant the Mystic Grill, 3 pm?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Business? I thought you were on a freedom trip, doing whatever you wanted?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I am :-) I merely don't wish for our first meeting to be right in the middle of danger._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Danger? The fuck, Trashie! What are you getting me in to?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _You'll be safe, don't worry. Talk to you soon! Xx_

Bella wasn't sure what to expect, but Trashie didn't show up on the day that they had agreed to. Which was probably fine seeing as Stefan was back in town and he had brought along Klaus and his sister Rebekah. And Katherine. And Mikael.

It's one thing to meet someone you've talked to online for years, it's another to bring them into harms way with all those vampires on the loose. Damon wanted Bella out of town. Bella refused, as always, and instead made sure that she had food for a week inside her house and enough booze to entertain herself while she worked on some of her stories, something she hadn't done in quite some time. Hiding away in her little house, waiting for the storm to calm down, waiting for Trashie to come back online.

Bella was hurt though. She had to admit that she was hurt by Trashie not showing up, but in hindsight, it had been for the best.

It appeared that Klaus was the crazy one in town now, one to look out for. It was entertaining to see that he used everyone as his entertainment, too. Perhaps he wasn't crazy, merely bored. He had the power to take revenge, seeing as he was an Original vampire and could compel normal vampires. Scratch that, ever since the Sun and Moon curse was broken, he was a hybrid.

Didn't she talk to Trashie about the curse and let their minds go completely wild on it, thinking that the curse wasn't for normal werewolves?

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Are you still talking to me?_

Bella opened her messenger and sighed. Was she? _**CeilingCat:**_ _I spent money to get to Mystic Falls and you weren't there._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Things got a little hectic. I'm sorry. Forgive me?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Are you okay?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Yes, why wouldn't I be? Come back to Mystic Falls. I've fallen in love with this city and we've bought a house. Well… no, that's a lie. It's a house that's been in the family for years and I'm renovating. If you like it, you could stay :-)_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _I AM in Mystic Falls you dipshit. I live here. And you know this because I told you this years ago. So who are you, really?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Come and find out :-) xx_

Bella let out a cry of frustration as she got to her feet and kicked against the desk, instantly regretting it because now her foot hurt. Oh, she needed to leave her house because she was getting cabin fever, but was she really going to drive around Mystic Falls to see which house was being renovated and was she really going to walk into an unfamiliar situation blindly?

Yes. Perhaps it sounded strange, but she'd been careful ever since her mother left, she emancipated and started to live on the grounds of the Salvatores. This carefulness had lead to Stefan nearly killing her and for Damon to have to save her and other weird shit. And she wasn't afraid.

If Trashie was a serial killer and would kill her, then maybe that was what she had lived for. To be killed. If Trashie wasn't a serial killer but truly her friend, then Bella would be safe.

And yet, despite her not being afraid, she packed a can of mace and a stake in her purse before grabbing her keys and headed out to her car. If she was lucky, nobody was home at the boarding home and she'd get away without being noticed.

Mystic Falls wasn't a big town, but if you didn't know what you were looking for, then it was a huge undertaking. She drove for what appeared to be a couple of hours before deciding to take the road less traveled. After all, the Salvatore boarding house wasn't on a main road, either, and she stumbled upon a magnificent looking home that looked quite busy with builders going in and out of the house as if they were working for their lives.

What had Trashie gotten herself into?

If this was the house, then Bella was seriously impressed. She parked the car and stared at the house and the movement for quite some time before there was a knock on her window, startling her. The woman, likely in her late twenties, waved excitedly at her and Bella got out, not sensing any danger coming off of her. "CeilingCat!" she smiled widely before hugging her gently. "It's so nice to finally meet you in person! Sorry for having lied to you about who I am but… it's the internet."

Bella looked at her 'friend' in shock. Trashie was taller than her, but perhaps that was due to the towering heels she was wearing and immaculately dressed in a pants suit, still, a little playful and punk, she was wearing a bright pink shirt underneath her dinner jacket. Her hair was jet black with thick strands of grey in it, dyed, of course. Bella thought it looked like a raccoon… which is what basically a trash panda was.

"I'm Myriam Jenkins and yes, I do hail from New Orleans so not all I've told you is a lie."

"Nice to meet you?" Bella said confused and pointed at the house. "Yours?"

"It's the boyfriend's house. We haven't been able to spend a lot of time together mainly because he was running from someone while hunting down someone so… he invited me over," Myriam looped her arm through Bella's as she started to walk towards the entrance. "I'm the thing he likes to keep a secret from the rest of the family. Or at least as far away from his family as possible."

"Is that a good thing?"

"Oh, definitely," Myriam grinned. "The sex is great! Anyway, keep an open mind, alright? He's the one who's been chatting with you too after getting curious."

"I don't do threesomes."

"Not asking you to, honey. The boyfriend is mine and I'm his. We're your friends. I am your friend." She gently squeezed Bella's arm. "You're safe here. Besides, wouldn't you like to have another place to hide in other than your little house?"

"I guess," Bella said puzzled as she looked at her. "Wait, how do you know I've been hiding?"

"Just our conversations. You were lonely. But no more. Not if you don't want to be," Myriam said as she opened the door and lead her into the hallway where a big staircase was being built. "Beautiful, huh? Pardon the mess, it'll be over soon."

Myriam was right, it was beautiful. Bella thought that the outside of the house was impressive, but inside, it looked even better. She got lost as she looked around and it took a gentle tug from Myriam to get her back in the present.

"Now, meet the other half of the TrashPanda, my boyfriend," Myriam said as she turned Bella around to face him.

"Hello, love, Klaus Mikaelson. So glad to finally make your acquaintance," he said as he gently took Bella's hand and kissed it, as he lovingly smiled up to her.


	5. Chapter 5

The name Klaus was supposed to make her cower in fear mainly because of all the stories she'd heard from Damon, how he made hybrids, hurt Elena, forced Stefan to be a Ripper again and more horror stories, but Bella wasn't afraid. His energy was familiar, somehow, and unlike when he possessed Alaric, there were no dark edges around his person. "Have we met before?" Bella asked stupidly. "Well, we've met before but have I met _you_ before?"

Klaus smiled at that. "The morning after I broke my curse, I was drawn to your little home and we sat there for most of the day. My head in your lap and you scratching me behind the ears."

"But how? Werewolves don't-"

"I'm a hybrid, love. I don't need the full moon to turn, nor do I ever have to turn again," he gently took her hand and lead her to another room as Myriam followed them. "Your kindness was new to me. Apart from Myriam's, of course."

Bella turned to Myriam. "Sorry I had your boyfriend's head in my lap for a couple of hours," she deadpanned.

"You can have his head in your lap anytime, honey," Myriam replied with a wink. "I know he's faithful to me, and if not, he'll tell me. Besides, you're not his type."

"You must have a thousand questions in that pretty little head of yours," Klaus said, amused as he brought them to a semi finished sitting room. "But first let me apologize for having lead you on for so long, our intentions aren't malicious."

"I know that. I can feel that. Somehow… I don't know," Bella sat down on the covered couch and looked at Klaus. "And you'd think I'd have a thousand questions, but I don't. Well, maybe a few but that's something Elijah said to me."

Klaus sighed deeply as he sat down across from her. "What has he done now?"

"He told me he and his family have been following mine for a very long time."

Klaus laughed at that. "Did he, now? He lied, love. We've met your grandfather Nathaniel during the second World War, surprised that he didn't get himself killed with his impulsive actions. As it turned out, he had a knack for stumbling into trouble. Your mother… well, she was quite different. Even as a young girl she was impulsive and had a habit of running away, never feeling at ease. I can assure you that all of our interactions with your family were a mere… coincidence. For some reason, we merely ran into each other."

"A crazy happenstance," Myriam nodded. "But your mom, she's gorgeous."

"You've met her? How?"

"Klaus turned me about 300 years ago. He saved me from my abusive family," she smiled widely, so much love showing as she looked at him. "I've been looking out for him ever since. Even being his little spy every now and then, getting messages to him…"

"Always moving so majestically in the shadows," Klaus said proudly as he kissed Myriam's hand. "She truly understands what I've been through with my own family. Soul mates aren't real, but if they were, Myriam would definitely fit that description."

Bella smiled at that. "That is adorable."

"She called us adorable, Klaus," Myriam giggled. "She called you, the monster of monsters, adorable."

Klaus was amused. Normally he'd get angry, but Bella was refreshing, disarmingly so. "Do you have any more questions, love? How about I ask you one?"

"Fire away."

"What are you?" He asked, leaning forward, studying her. "Do not take that the wrong way but you're different from your relatives. You're observant. You're smart. You've been hiding yourself away in that little house on Salvatore land, why is that? What are you?"

"I don't know. Honestly, I don't. Nobody seems to know and my theories are batshit crazy."

"Try me."

"I'm Snow White?"

Klaus chuckled. "Doubtful. What else?"

She shrugged. "I turned my ex-boyfriend into a pig after he dumped me and he changed drastically over a few months - like… vampire or werewolf or something else - and I got so angry... I turned him into a pig."

"Moritz?" Myriam laughed. "You turned Moritz into a pig?"

"And I don't know how to change him back."

"Now that's something you don't hear every day!" Klaus looked even more intrigued. "If you wish, I could send for some books for you to browse through to help you with your self discovery. They're my brother's, but he's not around."

"Elijah's?"

"No, love. I have another brother who was well versed with his witches and I managed to save a few of his books before he decided to hide them away from me."

"But I'm not a witch. Wouldn't Bonnie Bennett have sensed that about me? Or your own witch, even?"

"As I said, my brother was the one who enjoyed his witches and their lore. I merely like them for their usefulness," Klaus shrugged. "Just imagine, centuries of information about all kinds of witches, available to you."

"Yeah, sure," Bella smiled. "If you're offering."

"One condition. The books don't leave this house. I'll make sure that a room will be ready for you to relax in while you read by the time the books get here. A safe place, for you. As long as you're under my roof, nothing will happen to you. If someone gives you something as little as a scratch, I will have their heads."

They talked some more, and Bella found it fascinating how different Klaus was from the vampires she knew, that the stories she'd heard of him were an insight now that she had met him herself. It showed that Damon and Stefan and the rest of the scoobies were cowards. Idiots. She never had a high opinion of the scoobies anyway, but both Damon and Stefan were making mistakes upon mistakes. Not following through on their word, even though Stefan was being his jerk self right now.

He still had Damon following him around to make sure he didn't do anything stupid. Damon himself wasn't innocent of doing stupid things either. He should have walked away from all of this a long time ago.

No, Klaus was scary because he actually followed through on his demands. His threats. He had a goal in mind and wouldn't allow anyone to stop him, not even his own siblings. Bella found it strange that when Klaus was inside of Alaric that there was a dark aura around him, and there still was, but not as obvious; it was a mere sign that he had lived a thousand lives and that he knew what he was doing.

If Klaus was the monster that everyone thought he was, why would he have saved Myriam all those years ago?

However, she wasn't quite sure about her having to go to his house for those books all the time. While TrashPanda had always been somewhat honest, it was quite unusual to meet them in real life. Wasn't she going to betray the Salvatores after they had protected her all these years?

Then again, this was an opportunity for her to move forward and perhaps to learn more about herself. Maybe Klaus and Myriam could be the gateway to the guide that Zach Salvatore had talked to her about. They were older than Stefan and Damon, they knew the right supernatural beings.

"What's on your mind?"

Bella got roused from her thoughts by Klaus and she shyly smiled. "I'm trying to make a well thought out decision with everything I have learned."

"Zach Salvatore looked after you after your mother allowed you to emancipate, didn't he? It was a secret to Damon and Stefan, but their human relatives looked out for your family and other families dealing with the supernatural when they'd come into town, of their own accord, drawn to the supernatural."

"He told me that my mother has a sense of danger. That she can't quite pinpoint it but that she has that sense and that had us moving around a lot until Mystic Falls. Where she allowed me to stay because I am stronger than her," Bella replied, unsure what more to say, but she decided to go for it anyway. She had a feeling she could trust Klaus. While she trusted Damon, she never told him what was happening, just that she was supposed to be there. He didn't know. "Zach told me that I was safe in Mystic Falls as long as I kept pretending I was human and never discussed what I can do to others, likely in fear of people wanting me to do things for them."

"What can you do?"

Bella shrugged. "Sorry, can't say. But apart from that, it seems that animals seem to like me and I turned someone into a pig… and occasionally talk to dead people. He called me abnormal as apparently, whatever the hell I am doesn't fit all the right boxes. He told me about something he believed I could do, but he didn't want me to find out without a proper guide who knew what I was or could become. I've been reading everything the Salvatores have on the supernatural, observing, learning. But so far I can't find myself in anything. He also told me that I'd find the reason why I wanted to stay in Mystic Falls."

"Curious indeed," Klaus smiled. "Well, if anything, by now you must have exhausted their resources and our collection is extensive, how good of a reason is that?"

"Besides," Myriam smiled. "It'd be nice to have you around. Klaus' hybrids are nice puppies and all but I could use a friend to do things with. Like shopping. Or spa days."

"And you know I don't do shopping and spa days," Bella countered playfully. "Very well, I'll take you up on your offer then, Klaus. Thank you."

"Stefan Salvatore is holding my family hostage. Would you be angry with me if I accidentally killed him?"

"After what he did to me?" Bella snorted. "I can't say anything about what's going on but you do what you have to do."

Klaus beamed at Myriam. "I like her."

"Yep, me too," Myriam softly kissed him before jumping up and pulling Bella off the couch. "Come, I'll show you around. Are you staying for dinner? You can get to know us a little better that way."

"Sure, why not," Bella replied as she followed Myriam through the next room. "Why did you lie to me?"

"I figured that saying 'Hey, I'm a 300 year old vampire and my seer thinks you're pretty darn special and I want to get to know you better and keep an eye out' was a bit too much," Myriam replied with a smile. "Besides, I liked what you were writing. Fiction or fan fiction. Your work shows you're intelligent and you have this need to figure things out on your own."

"You know who I was?"

"Yep," Myriam nodded. "And no, I have no idea what you are. Neither does Klaus, so it's a good thing that you're researching the supernatural community. That you observe and stay on the sidelines. Did you use a spell to turn Moritz into a pig?"

Bella thought for a moment. "No. I was just really angry and kept calling him a pig in my mind and poof! There he went. I don't feel bad about it, I mean, he had it coming, but it's scary, you know."

"I can relate. I suppose anyone who's turned into a vampire can relate. Everything is heightened. Running really fast becomes like a superpower and we have to control our bloodlust so we don't kill everyone."

"Speaking of which, you do have that under control, don't you? You and Klaus?"

"Don't worry," Myriam grinned. "We won't eat the innocent girl who's still evolving into something we've probably never seen before," Myriam took her upstairs on the marvelous stairs and turned a corner. "What do you think? Would this be the perfect room for a library where you can hang out?"

The large windows overlooked the forests behind the mansion, she could see the stables from here and it was beautiful. The space itself was large with high ceilings. "You're asking me? This is your home," Bella laughed as she looked up. "I'd be happy with just a little corner!"

"Well, I was thinking with a window seat, you know, with a seat IN the window so you can look outside, have natural light. And basically everything playing on that natural light to light the room. I don't know. I just thought a window seat would be nice," Myriam shrugged. "I doubt that he'll renovate the entire house. Like yourself, Klaus gets a bit jittery from time to time and needs to move. Although now that Mikael's dead, maybe he can start to live a little."

"I suppose when your own father is the one who wants to kill you comes back… yeah," Bella shook her head. "I can't possibly imagine what that must feel like… I mean, my mother is a runner and a flake, and my dad… well, it's a good thing he knows where the diner is."

Myriam laughed at that. "Yeah, it was tough on him, but he found clever ways of hiding. I was the only one who knew where he was at all times. Klaus is all about exclusiveness. If he likes you, loves you, you're in his inner circle; you're family. He told me he wanted to meet you proper after your encounter with him as a wolf. It was his second time in a 1000 years where he'd turned and his mind was going all sorts of places and you calmed him down. Not that he'd tell anyone that. Niklaus Mikaelson is a tough cookie, no one messes with him and he's totally not vulnerable and a complete maniac."

"Stefan, Damon and the rest are so scared of him."

"As they should be. Klaus is dangerous. But not towards those he deems worthy of him."

"Like me?"

"I think you scare him more than Mikael has ever done. Or even more than he fears the Original Witch."

"Me? Little old me?"

"We feel that you have the potential to become the biggest force of power we've not seen in a very long time, mainly because it's so unclear as to what you are. We do want to help you discover yourself, but I think that Zach Salvatore was right in how to approach this; allow you to go on your own journey and have you make all the decisions for you," Myriam said truthfully. "And another thing. I believe you've read the Twilight saga?"

"Of course," Bella huffed. "It quite surprised me, to be honest. And the author says it came to her all in a dream? Please."

"Well… Stephenie Meyer is part witch. She says she's not, but she is. We believe she received visions about your life and instead of keeping it to herself, she decided to make a book out of it. The books are basically what would have happened if you'd gone to Forks instead of staying here. Although Cold Ones don't exist; they're a regular coven of vampires who have witches on retainer. They're not gifted. They are bunny munchers. There's no Volturi."

"What?"

"Yep. But you have nothing to worry about. Klaus convinced her not to write about you anymore and-"

"I want the author dead," Bella muttered. "She wrote me married to some jackass who watched people sleep, had me have his baby and ugh. How is that even possible? Any case, what kind of drugs is she on to assume that a 16 year old girl, later 18, would wait for marriage to have sex? I would have dumped his ass on the spot!"

Myrian laughed at that. "Oh, Bella, I do love your sense of humor."

"And those books are badly written too. It's why I prefer to read fanfiction because those stories are better but even then, knowing that it's a version of ME... ew."

Myriam shrugged, then. "That's why they invented crossovers. You can actually do some self insertion and not get flamed for it."

"Ha! Totally!"

"That sex scene you wrote with Dean Winchester? Woah, girl, you have some wicked thoughts!" Myriam grinned as she lead Bella out of the room to explore the upper level. "You made my ears blush with that and I've seen a lot!"

"Oh geez, stop," Bella shook her head, a big smile on her face. "Now you're embarrassing."

"I mean, do you do that stuff in real life too?" Myriam said amazed. "Because damn, girl, I'd know just the right person for you and he's a Mikaelson!"

"If you're going to say Elijah, I'll get a spoon and spoon your eyes out of your sockets before shoving them in your mouth."

"Nope, not him. I doubt you'll ever meet him, though. Klaus has him safely boxed up."

"In one of the coffins Stefan is holding hostage?"

"Yep."

"So he's not safe."

"Nope," Myriam let out a breath. "I doubt Stefan will undagger them, though. Having to deal with the wrath of Klaus is one thing, imagine the entire family against you. I really don't want to be Stefan right now."

"Stefan's a jerk. He nearly killed me. Hadn't it been for Damon, I would have died."

"Those boys are nothing but trouble," Myriam agreed. "Are you safe, though? On their property?"

"Of course," Bella replied with a smile. "No one gets into my house when they can't cross the threshold without an invitation, including Damon and Stefan. The moment I leave my car Damon's crows keep an eye on me and a handful of foxes come out of the bushes to greet me," she shrugged.

"But they didn't do anything when Stefan took you."

"Well, Stefan is a Salvatore, he wouldn't hurt me, right?" Bella scoffed. "He doesn't give a shit when he's without his humanity. As a Ripper. Especially now, whatever he did with Klaus on his trip, it fucked him up." She then let out a deep breath. "You know, sometimes I wished that I could go back to being normal. Oblivious to everything that's happening around me."

"What would that do?"

"I don't know. I wouldn't have forgotten to apply for college?"

"If that's your only regret," Myriam smiled at her. "Who knows what you'll become? Perhaps immortal like the rest of us and you could do college again and again and again and hold a thousand Phd's."

"Overkill, much?"

"Bella, the world is an amazing place filled with wonder and magic. You need to see more. Absorb it all and you wouldn't want to be a normal human being ever again. Just imagine, if you're going to become even half as badass as Klaus and I think you'll become, you don't have to be afraid of anything anymore. You can do whatever you want."

"But what if you're wrong and I'm just a flake, like my mother?"

"Doubtful. Your mother would have run from this house the minute she set foot in it."

"Maybe."

"When you met up with your mother in Florida, did you discuss what's happening to you?"

Bella shook her head as Myriam took her downstairs again. "I let her guide our conversation. She did say that it looked like something had changed within me and that it was alright I forgot to apply for college, that a year off was what I deserved."

"That's nice."

"So what did I do? I quit my job at the Grill, which is stupid because this is a small town and a job is hard to get by, but I live rent free and I think I can live off my savings for awhile."

"Why did you quit?"

"I don't know. I felt like I needed to do it because it had become some sort of supernatural hang out and an office for Alaric, I guess."

"Self preservation, perhaps?"

"Yeah, maybe, I don't know. I don't know how I work or what I can do," Bella frustratingly ran a hand through her hair. "Is time travel possible?"

"No, honey," Myriam laughed. "But I do think that we're just in time for dinner."


	6. Chapter 6

A couple of days later Bella was shocked to find $50,000 in her bank account courtesy of Klaus Mikaelson and she didn't know if she felt insulted or grateful. It had been her choice to stop working at the Grill, why would he feel obligated to give her this kind of money? It was a lot of money!

Grabbing her purse and keys, she headed out of her house and headed straight for the Mikaelson home. This was the first time since TrashPanda revealed themselves to her and she felt slightly nervous. Something was brewing and usually, she wasn't mistaken. However, instead of feeling the feeling of doom, regret and pain, she felt excitement. It only got stronger as she approached the house.

Bella got out of her car and knocked on the front door, surprised to have it opened by a real maid. She had the outfit and everything, not one of those traditional maid outfits, but those you can purchase in specialty shops. "Uh, I'm here to see Klaus?"

"Please, come in," the woman said, stepping away from the door to allow Bella access. "Wait here." Closing the door, the woman scurried off, leaving Bella in wonder of the encounter, but also in awe of how much work had been done in the days she was at home. It looked like Klaus' house was finished. Everything was immaculate, sparkling and immense.

"Bella!" Myriam greeted her with a big smile and hugged her tightly. "You know you could just walk in, right?"

"Not my style," she replied as she pointed at the maid. "Klaus' idea?"

"Yeah, but that's okay. He can look, as long as he doesn't touch or I'll have his balls," Myriam grinned. "Your library is finished, want to come and take a look?"

"I actually wanted to talk to Klaus about something…"

"Oh, he'll be back. He's getting his coffins back, isn't that exciting?"

"Stefan gave in?"

"It's still a tug of war, but returning the family to Klaus is the least he could do," Myriam replied before taking her deeper into the mansion. "Come, you're going to get a kick out of this."

The library did look amazing. While it wasn't stockpiled with a lot of books, it were the books that Klaus had promised to get her and they were all neatly piled onto a desk. The window seat that Myriam had talked about was there, and there was also a very comfortable looking couch. Empty bookcases from floor to ceiling and Bella was just in awe. "This looks amazing."

"It's one of my favourite rooms now," Myriam said as she flopped on the couch and pointed at the books. "You can start reading while we wait for Klaus to return."

Bella let out a chuckle and got one of the books before settling on the couch next to Myriam and started to read. "Huh," she eventually said as she cocked her head. "I've read a lot of things about witches already but this is the first time a spell is mentioned to see if you're a witch. Or a Traveler in this case."

"Oh, ew, Travelers," Myriam said, disgusted by the idea, before turning around with a big smile on her face. "They're supposed to be extinct. There's still a handful left, but not a lot. They're like the ugly little sister of the witches we all know now."

"I don't think there are witches on my mother's side, though. Besides, don't witches need to cast spells to do things? I willed someone to turn into a pig and dead people just find me."

"Well, not if they're naturally gifted, but you're right, for heavy duty things as turning someone into a pig, a spell is usually required," Myriam nodded. "Besides, doing something that heavy duty for a Traveler witch is nearly impossible as they can't practise traditional magic. They'd need doppelganger blood or even hybrid blood to make that possible." She then tapped on the book. "Perhaps Klaus should have offered you other books, not those on witchcraft."

"But it's magic, isn't it? What I do?"

Myriam shrugged, then. "It depends on how you see it, really. Some people call it magic, some call it an ability. A super power. Granted, when you're dealing with vampires and witches, you're usually dealing with magic, not Spiderman or Fantastic Four types of things."

Bella snorted as she put the book away and rolled onto her stomach to look at Myriam. "Would be incredibly stupid if I was like a mutant or something."

"Mutants don't exist. At least not the way they describe in the comics, so pass."

"Oh! What about Hercules? Who knows, I could grow up to be super strong!"

"As if you're a goddess!" Myriam hiccuped. "Please, that's… that's just insane and too far fetched."

"Is it, though?" Bella lifted up her head to look at her. "I mean, we've ruled everything out. The most logical thing is to move to things I haven't checked out yet."

"What, you're the next Percy Jackson?"

"He was fictional," Bella rolled her eyes at Myriam before sighing in resignation. "My knowledge of the Gods and Goddesses is limited."

"As far as I know, the Gods and Goddesses were a myth, much like the different religions around the globe have their own gods to believe in in modern day. There's a god of war, a god of food, a god of hair, a god of nice teeth," Myriam waved her hands about. "There's one book telling stories about those gods but is there anyone alive that can prove that these gods were real? No. Well, let me tell you this; I know of a God. And his name is Klaus. He's the Sex God."

Bella laughed at that.

"No, seriously, think about it. Klaus and his family were the Original vampires. They are the Original vampires. Without them, vampires wouldn't exist. So they're basically Gods. They're alive - for the most part, and they can create others of their kind. Wouldn't they have discovered the other gods by now? Or their descendants?" Myriam folded her legs underneath her. "The Mikaelsons are living, breathing Gods who can be touched but cannot die unless someone wields a dangerous weapon, much like the Gods that are supposedly out there but the thing is, there is no heaven. There's The Other Side where all supernatural beings go when they die, but humans? It's just blackness."

Bella was quiet for a moment and sighed. "So what does that make me? If you and Klaus are scared of what I'll become… what else is there? I mean, according to your logic, the Titans aren't real either. That there's nothing higher than Klaus and his family."

"Exactly," Myriam grinned. "I don't think the answers that you seek are to be found in books, but mainly through experience."

"Bah. I need to do something, I'm bored."

Just as she spoke those words, a loud crashing could be heard from downstairs followed by Klaus growling that he'd just finished renovating. Myriam and Bella jumped up and ran downstairs, finding Klaus and Elijah quietly talking with a glass of blood in their hands. There were pieces of the table and the French doors everywhere and they were acting as if nothing happened.

"Niklaus, I do realise we have a lot to discuss, but why is Miss Swan your guest?"

"She's a friend, Elijah. You shall treat her as such or I will find the missing dagger and put you back into your box."

"Be nice," Bella told Klaus as she leaned against the broken doorpost and looked at the room behind Klaus and his brother, where two more coffins rested and she was curious to them. "Can I have a peek? I promise I'll be respectful."

"Yes!" Myriam said as she pulled Bella along with her, flashing a smile at Elijah before continuing her way to the coffins.

"And Myriam? Niklaus, surely you-"

"Myriam is the reason why I've been so successful at hiding over the last few centuries, Elijah, and she's mine. She deserves the same respect as Bella does, if not more," Klaus said with a tone of warning in his voice.

While Klaus and Elijah continued to talk quietly about everything that Elijah had missed during his nap, Myriam opened the first coffin. "Ah, look. This is the oldest one of the bunch; Finn. He's been daggered for 900 years because he's a complete mommy's boy and hates the whole idea of being an immortal vampire," she explained as she looked at the dessicated vampire. "Kind of an ass, if you have to believe Klaus. Doing everything in his power to cause the end of their existence."

Bella didn't like the feeling she got off of Finn, either, so she believed the words to be true. She gently closed the coffin but her fingers lingered on the lid, tapping gently on it and sighing. "Is there a way to like… seal this forever so he can't get out?"

Klaus looked over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows at her. "Excuse me?"

"I know he's your brother. Family is everything. I know all of that. But… I don't know, I just feel that he shouldn't ever be let out. He's been in there for a very long time, you don't know what will happen should you ever feel generous to allow him to roam free. If you hate him that much, you should have killed him. Now you risk being stabbed in the back by your own flesh and blood."

"That sounds quite prophetic, love," Klaus said gently before he considered her words. Looking over at Elijah, he could tell that his brother was shocked at what the girl was telling them. "I'll consider it."

"Niklaus! Do you truly believe the girl's words? Should we have committed fratricide? Do you truly believe he shouldn't be let out, at all?"

"Oh, don't start with me, Elijah, you hate Finn as much as the rest of us do."

Bella turned around to face the other coffin and ran her hand over the closed lid as she walked around it. "Sadness," she said softly, gently opening the lid revealing yet another dessicated male vampire. "Hurt. Why is this one in here?"

"That's Kol. He's kind of a maniac, a loose cannon," Myriam explained. "He's also a hoot, but really unpredictable."

"He's sad and hurt," Bella said, slowly reaching into the coffin to caress Kol's cheek. "It's mainly because of Elijah, isn't it? He doesn't like having to deal with Klaus and Kol at the same time and Klaus can't be daggered, so the best solution is this one." She glared at Elijah over the coffin. "You try to be all noble and shit, but that's just bull, isn't it? Everyone says that Klaus is an asshole but you're the biggest of them all."

Before Bella knew it, Elijah had her away from the coffin and pinned against a wall. "How dare you. Show some respect."

"Elijah!" Klaus growled as he peeled his brother off of their guest. "You can't fault the girl from speaking the truth!"

"She's in our house, Niklaus. Your demand of me having respect for her when it's clearly not mutual is quite mind boggling."

"Elijah the noble _stag_." Bella merely said before Elijah disappeared and a stag appeared in his place. "There. That should shut him up."

Both Klaus and Myriam looked as if someone turned into a pink pony. Well, Elijah turned into a stag, that was the same, wasn't it? They looked at the stag in shock, before exchanging glances and then at Bella, who was now back at Kol's coffin, gently closing the lid.

"So, when are you going to undagger Kol? When this shit with Stefan is over?"

It were a few more quiet minutes before Klaus cleared his throat, running a hand through his hair. "Uh, Bella? I need my brother to be my brother, not an animal. But I do find it amazing how you've changed him, truly. I am certain he will think twice before attacking you now."

"I couldn't change Moritz back, why do you think I can change him back?"

"Because you changed Moritz out of anger, something he deserved. You look quite relaxed to me at this moment," Klaus smiled sweetly. "Please, love."

"When do you need him?"

"Tomorrow."

"Then I will turn him back tomorrow," she said simply and started to brush the dust off Kol's coffin with her sleeve.

"Is this because I do not wish to undagger my brother right now?"

"Maybe that too," she shrugged. "But Elijah deserves this. I'll try to fix him tomorrow."

Myriam zoomed out of the room, only to return with a bucket of water and a cloth. "Here, use this, it might work better," she said before hugging Bella. "Yay, you're getting better at your powers!"

"Why won't you undagger my brother, Bella, if it's bothering you so much?" Klaus asked as he pushed his brother into an enclosed space, out of sight from everyone else. There's nothing he could do about the situation now unless he wanted to anger the powerful girl in his home. He didn't want to. She was right in punishing Elijah and in a way, it truly was amoozing.

"Because I don't meddle with your affairs. I'm sure that when the time's right, you will undagger him," Bella said as she started to properly clean the coffin. "But you'd better be nice to him, all Kol wants is to be appreciated and loved by you."

"And how do you know?"

"I just do," Bella shrugged. "Myriam and I have deducted that I'm definitely not a witch. Got anything else for me to read?"

Bella stayed the night in the library, comfortable in the window seat and a blanket, feeling safe. She wasn't quite sure what it was though, was it the idea that Klaus and Myriam were scared of her and thus warned everyone about her? She didn't want people to fear her, that would be so bad. How could she make friends when everyone was nice to her out of fear?

Did she feel safe because of what she did to Elijah? She somehow knew she was going to be able to turn him back because she turned him into a stag to teach him a lesson, not because she was angry. But even so, the fact that she knew, and that turning him had been so easy was enough to make her scared of herself.

Or maybe it had to do something with that vampire in the coffin, Kol. Just like she had felt with Finn, he was alive in there. His body dessicated but his mind fully aware of everything going on around him, and she had felt instantly drawn to him, connected, and she couldn't wait to meet him. Oh, she could go downstairs and pull the dagger out of him, but she didn't want to disrespect Klaus.

Since when were vampires in coffins a normal thing, anyway? The whole thing should freak her out, but it didn't. Coffins were supposed to be comfortable, right?

There were so many things going on inside her mind and she couldn't sleep. Grabbing her blanket, she quietly made her way down, to the coffins and pulled up a chair next to Kol's. She opened the coffin and he was still there, grey and veiny, still. "Hello again," she said softly as she wrapped the blanket around her. "I figured I could keep you company for a while. To tell you a little about myself even when I'm not sure if you'll remember it when Klaus decides to wake you up."

She felt how his mood changed, a slight hint of panic. "Hey, calm down," Bella soothed him. "Klaus likely believes it's for your own safety that you're not here while he deals with Stefan. Then again, there's more strength in numbers, is there? I can't undagger you, Kol, as much as I'd like to."

Bella took in every little detail of Kol as she looked at him, his mind quieting down again. She wasn't a mind reader, but she could tell that his soul liked her being with him that night. "You've been down for nearly a century, haven't you? History is a hobby of mine, I can tell you all about everything you've missed so far, too, if you'd like."

She quietly talked at him for the entire night, telling him most things about her, about history, about music as she felt that got his attention, even played him some from her phone.

Only when the sun rose, she noticed that Klaus had been standing in the doorway. "How long have you been here?"

"Hours," he smiled at her. "I didn't want to disturb your chat with my brother. You do know that he won't remember anything?"

She looked up to him then and shook her head. "He's in there. Aware. Awake. You quieted his body by daggering him, but not his mind. Have you ever been daggered, Klaus?"

"Doesn't work on me, love," he admitted. "Kol will soon get his wish, once I've retrieved the fourth coffin and dealt with Stefan. You didn't mind me killing him, did you?"

"Of course not," Bella replied as she closed Kol's coffin and got to her feet. "Would you like your Elijah back?"

"Yes please," Klaus pointed at the room the stag was being kept in. "He and I still have a few things to discuss before our little dinner party tonight."

"Dinner party?"

"Business negotiations are best made over dinner. I'm going to invite Stefan and Damon over for dinner with myself and Elijah. Would you care to join us to observe as an impartial referee?"

"Myriam and I have plans, sorry," Bella said as she walked to the room Klaus had locked stag Elijah in and opened the door to face the beast. "Have you learned your lesson? Because I will give you another time out when I feel like it."

The stag snorted and bowed his head, hanging it in shame.

"Good boy. You can be Elijah again."

The stag turned into a naked Elijah and Bella smirked. "That was fun!" She then turned around to walk away, seeing Elijah naked wasn't the most perfect start of the morning. "Klaus, your brother is naked and he didn't look too pleased."

"Bella, please kindly refrain from turning my family into animals?"

"He deserved it."

"He did, but he won't disrespect you again, you have my word."

"What is she?" Elijah demanded, grabbing the blanket Bella had dropped to the floor and wrapped it around him. "Niklaus, you can't-"

"We don't know, isn't that exciting, brother?" Klaus grinned and lead him away. "Come, let me show you your room, you can get changed there."


	7. Chapter 7

Bella had allowed Myriam to take her into town and do some shopping. Myriam insisted that Bella had a laptop; she knew she had an aging computer at the Salvatore guesthouse, but if she was going to spend more time at the house, it would be nice for Bella to have everything she needed to feel at ease. Like being able to continue to write.

Bella balked, at first, mainly because she didn't need charity, but Myriam told her that it was for her own best interest as well; Bella hadn't been updating her stories for a while now and she wanted to keep reading. She pointed out that first and foremost, Myriam was Bella's biggest fan and the least she could do was to provide Bella with everything she needed to continue her art.

Myriam then bought a handful of DVD's for them to watch and they went to the supermarket to get snacks; there was no need to worry about food as they'd be served in the sitting room while Klaus and Elijah had the Salvatores over for dinner.

Myriam insisted that they'd drop by Bella's place to get her some clean clothes and pyjamas, if she was going to make a habit of staying over, she deserved some closet space for her things. There was nobody home in the big house, both cars were gone and it was nice and quiet, but Myriam was fascinated by the amount of foxes coming out of hiding when Bella stepped foot on the grass. "Wow."

"Cute, aren't they?" Bella smiled and addressed the foxes. "She's good people. Go away." And just like that, the foxes turned away and scurried off. Upon arriving at the house, Bella looked at Myriam, an apologetic look on her face. "Look, I'm not going to invite you in and it doesn't have anything to do with you."

"Honey, I understand," she smiled at her. "I'll just sit here on the porch while you gather your things, just hurry up, we have a lot of movies to watch and you can break in your laptop!"

Bella let out a snort as she entered her house and started to gather her things. She was surprised when she received a text message from Damon, asking if she needed anything before he was going out to dinner. She replied that she was well taken care of and that he didn't have to worry that she was going to starve. And she wasn't. By the amount of snacks that Myriam bought, she would be able to eat for days and that wasn't even counting dinner.

Not even half an hour later, they settled in the Mikaelson sitting room and Myriam put on the first movie while Bella made herself comfortable in the big chair. "I was wondering," Myriam asked as she sat down in the other comfy chair and looked at Bella. "Klaus told me you were talking to Kol all night as if he could hear you."

"I think he did," Bella replied with a shrug. "Have you ever dessicated yourself?"

"No," Myriam snorted. "I wouldn't dare. Sure, in the past it would have been nice to hide forever but what's the point in that? It's better to face your problems head on and I did."

"I think you can compare it to someone who's in a coma. Their body might not work, but they're still in there," Bella grabbed a handful of chips and started to eat them. "I don't know for sure, of course, at least not until Klaus decides to free his brother from the coffin."

"You still don't want Finn out, do you?"

"Nope, but what can I do? I'm not going to get involved in that, it's not my business. Same reason why I haven't undaggered Kol."

"Your restraint is amazing."

"I've always felt like I was on the outside, looking in, observing things and for most of my life ignoring things. It wasn't until someone told me to stop ignoring the supernatural or try to rationalize what I saw that I stopped ignoring. Everyone should be able to make their own decisions, not have them dictated by someone."

"So what do you think of Klaus and his hybrids? The compelled servants in this house?"

"His choice, not mine and not for me to judge."

"And yet you judge him for boxing up his siblings."

"Yep."

Myriam laughed. "How is that any different?"

Bella was quiet for a long time, thinking about it. "I think that the answers that I seek, the reason why I'm still in Mystic Falls, lies with Kol. If I add up everything… the way I was drawn to his coffin, the way he responded to my voice and my stories… I think he might know something that I need to hear."

Giggling, Myriam dug into the bag of DVD's and tossed one at Bella. "There's a movie about that, falling in love with a coma patient."

Bella laughed. "I'm not in love, Myriam. I don't even know him!"

"No, but you're drawn to him. Oh, Klaus will freak out!"

"Shut up," Bella blushed. "I'm interested in Kol because as I said, he might know something that I need to hear."

"Uhuh," Myriam smirked as she, too, grabbed a handful of chips to munch on. "Bella and Kol, sitting in a tree…" she sang. "K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

"You suck!" Bella laughed as she threw some chips at Myriam, who laughed but then heard something at the door, signalling to Bella to be quiet for a moment and listen.

"Damon, Stefan," Klaus greeted the two brothers. "Elijah tells me you seek an audience. Very bold. Let's discuss the terms of our agreement like civilized men, shall we?"

"It's better to indulge him," Elijah's voice sounded.

"I smell venison," Damon quipped. "I hope it's raw meat for you, brother."

"I didn't come here to eat, Klaus," Stefan sounded as if he was ignoring his brother. Poor Damon. "In fact, I didn't want to come here at all but I was told I had to because you were willing to hear us out."

"Well, we can sit and eat or I can reach down your throats and pull out your insides. Choice is yours."

Myriam sighed happily as she quietly closed the door, making it sound proof. "He's so hot when making threats. He does it so well..."

"Uhuh," Bella let out a snort. "I guess you'll be jumping his bones when the dinner's over?"

"Hell yes!"

During their first movie of the night, they were served by the maids, the same food as the men were having, and the second movie Myriam put in was _Confessions of a Shopaholic_. "You know, maybe we could go to the mall tomorrow and shop for some sexy lingerie," Myriam said, deep in thought as she ate her dinner.

"Well, you could."

"You too!"

Bella snorted. "I can give you two perfectly good reasons as why I am not in need of sexy lingerie."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yep. One; I haven't had sex for like a year because I was too busy studying for school and reading all those books to find me a new boyfriend. Two; you'd actually need to have money to spend on sexy lingerie. You already bought me a laptop, I will not allow you to buy me my underwear."

"Klaus gave me his credit card," Myriam said, teasingly.

She then remembered the exact reason why she came round to the house yesterday. She needed to rip Klaus a new one because she didn't need his money. "Excuse me," Bella said as she got up and walked right out of the room, straight into Klaus' meeting. Which she had forgotten about. Oh well.

"What do you say, Klaus? It's time for you to put something on the table," Damon's voice sounded before the door opened, revealing Bella dressed in a fluffy pyjama and bunny slippers. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Miss Bella is my guest," Klaus replied, amused, before turning to her. "Love, I'm in the middle of something. Go back to your girls night."

"Yeah, sorry, I forgot…" Bella ran a hand through her hair. "I just remembered why I came here, yesterday, and you and Myriam have been distracting me."

"Me, love?" Klaus huffed. "Well, that's just a crazy accusation." He then turned to Damon and Stefan. "She turned Elijah into a majestic stag last night for a time out. It was quite amoozing."

"Niklaus," Elijah warned him, seemingly anxious about something.

Bella narrowed her eyes on Elijah. "What did you do now, Elijah? You're hiding something!" She looked at Damon and tilted her head. "So are you!"

"What have you done?" Klaus demanded.

"What have you done?" Elijah countered. "See, I've learned not trust your vulgar promises, Klaus. We're doing this on my terms now."

Bella gasped when she saw the vampire she had talked at that night round the corner and he was so handsome. So incredibly handsome that made her heart beat faster and her skin heat up. That look in his eyes, so… devious. Dangerous.

"Kol," Klaus said, fear in his voice as he took a step back with his hands up.

"Long time, brother," Kol replied as he continued his approach.

"Finn, don't," Klaus begged when his other brother, the one that Bella warned about, rushed in, grabbed a dagger and stabbed Klaus' hand, causing him to scream.

Bella was so enthralled by Kol's appearance that she hadn't noticed that Rebekah had passed her, blocking Klaus' escape.

"Rebekah!"

Klaus doubled over in pain and stumbled back, to be caught by Kol and keeping his brother in a body lock.

"You're free to go," Elijah told Stefan and Damon. "This is family business."

Klaus looked over Rebekah's shoulder to Bella, fear in his eyes. Bella could feel Kol's eyes on her as well, feeling his awareness, his presence pierce her soul. Klaus didn't deserve this, and dammit, it happened again. "Damnit! Now it's my turn!" Bella raised her voice before every sibling, apart from Klaus, flew against a wall, keeping them there until she'd release them. She didn't even care that Stefan and Damon were caught in the same swoop that she'd done.

She marched over to Klaus and pulled him to his feet before slapping him in the face. "Why did you give me money? Am I a charity case to you? As I told Myriam, I have savings to allow me to feed myself."

Klaus blinked at her, confused as what was happening. It seemed as if he landed in one mess after another. "It's called kindness, love," he spoke quietly. "I have the means to make your life more comfortable, why wouldn't I do that?"

"I've never accepted money from anyone. Anyone. Not even the Salvatores. I can take care of myself."

It was then when Myriam walked in, impressed by what she saw, amused and frightened at the same time. She gently placed her hands on Bella's shoulders and squeezed them. "Honey, all Klaus wants is to take care of his family. To keep them safe from harm. To do everything in his power to make sure that when his family does come out, nothing will harm them. To have them not to want for anything." Myriam gently squeezed Bella's shoulders again. "Think."

She looked at Klaus, who had nothing but love and admiration in his eyes for her. "Oh."

"Yep," Myriam gently pat on Bella's head.

"Sorry," she muttered.

"It's alright, love," Klaus said gently, caressing a strand of her hair out of her face. "You're right, you're used to taking care of yourself and you've been on your own for so long, it's alright to feel insulted, but it's not what I meant by giving you that small token of gratitude."

"I feel so embarrassed now," she sighed as she turned around and headed towards the door. "I'll hide out in the library."

"Aren't you forgetting something, honey?" Myriam reminded her, causing Bella to look over her shoulder to see the vampires dangling from the walls.

"Oh, sorry," she said as she shrugged and had them drop down to the floor. "Carry on, don't mind me," Bella then walked out of the room, her bunny slippers clicking on the grand staircase leading upstairs.

"Niklaus, what were you thinking bringing that… overpowered abnormality into our home?"

"Elijah, I heard that!" Bella called out. "Behave or face the consequences!"

"Niklaus!"

Finn, Rebekah and Kol gasped in awe when Elijah transformed into a stag, again.

"See, I knew I smelled venison," Damon deadpanned before he was dragged out by Stefan. "Hey!"

"We need to go."

"But Bella…"

"She's quite capable of handling herself, come on, before she hurts us."

"Bella wouldn't hurt _me_."

"Let's go, Damon!" Stefan kept tugging on him until he followed on his own accord.

When Bella heard the front door shut, she turned Elijah back, mainly to show the rest of the siblings that she was not one to mess with, and if someone messed with Klaus, they'd face the same consequences. She needed a timeout. She needed some time to cool off. To safe face, she felt embarrassed and the library was comfortable. Yes it was the end of girl's night but that was alright. She had a feeling that there would be more nights to come.

When she arrived in the library, she could feel darkness creep into the house. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to stay. She should get dressed and go home, but Bella also felt a responsibility to stay; to make sure that her new family wouldn't get hurt. She hadn't ever felt this torn; whomever just entered the house was definitely scary.

She made herself comfortable in the window seat and pulled the blanket over her and stared out of the window until she fell asleep, only to be awoken a few hours later by Kol. "You're staring."

"Well, it seems only fitting that I watch you sleep, since you did the same for me."

"No, I didn't. You were awake. I was actually sleeping," Bella yawned as she looked at him. "You're being creepy."

"Kol Mikaelson, pleasure to meet you," he said, extending his hand to her.

"Bella Swan. Sleep deprived and grumpy," she shook his hand before snuggling her blanket closer and closing her eyes again.

"I should be more interested in exploring the new Mystic Falls or spend time with my newly resurrected family, that includes our Mother, but you are fascinating."

"No, I am a tired human."

"Fascinating," Kol said again. "Because I think you're not. You're not a witch, either, which makes me think you fit in the obscure box of supernaturals who aren't actually supernaturals. Like a nymph or a pixie." He took a seat opposite of her in the window seat, not giving up. "Did you know that they're descended from the old Gods?"

"I've already had that discussion with Myriam. Gods don't exist. The closest thing to Gods are you guys."

"Ah," Kol sighed happily. "I'm flattered, darling, but we're merely unkillable vampires. But please, do go on, tell me how handsome I am."

"Nope," Bella yawned. "Because that would be a false compliment."

"What?"

"You're asking me to tell you how handsome you are, that's ridiculous because that's not a voluntary complement and therefore, false."

"But you do think that I am handsome. I could feel it when you spoke to me last night, and when I entered the room to hurt Niklaus. Your heart skipped a few beats and you were aroused."

She was too tired for this shit. "How do you know that? Maybe Klaus aroused me."

"Oh please, as if Myriam would allow anyone to even get that up close and personal with him," Kol grinned. "You clearly don't like Elijah and Finn… well, he's just dull. No, you like me."

"Maybe my preferences lie with the same sex."

"Rebekah was behind you. Doubtful."

Bella groaned as she hit him on the head with one of the tiny pillows that were in the window seat. "You'd better stop now, or I'll give you the Elijah treatment."

Kol laughed at that and threw his hands up. "Alright, my little Goddess. Or Goddess adjacent. I'll allow you to get your rest. Busy day tomorrow, you're going clothes shopping."

"What!"

"Oh, yes. Mother wants to throw a ball now that we're all reunited, to get to know the town and see who's who and all. You're coming with me as my date," Kol said smug. "I don't have anyone nor the time to find me someone and you'll do nicely."

"The hell I am."

"Yes, you are."

"You didn't ask me!"

"What's there to ask?" Kol countered. "I bet you'll look astonishing in fancy dress."

"No."

"Yes."

"Nope. And you can't make me."

Kol cocked his head as a mischievous smile appeared on his face. "Is that a bet, darling?"

"No," Bella whined. "I just want to sleep."

He moved then, sitting on his knees as he brought his face closer to hers. "I could make you scream in pleasure," he whispered. "I am very talented."

"Go away. Or you will get the Elijah experience."

"I'm quite confident that I won't," he said smugly. "Because otherwise you would have done that already." Kol then hopped out of the seat. "Very well, I shall allow you to go back to sleep. We'll continue our conversation tomorrow."

"No, we won't."

"Yes, we will." He started to make his way out of the library before turning around. "You know, you could always come join me in my bed, I'm sure that's a lot more comfortable than that window seat."

Bella thought for a moment. That would be the ultimate punishment for him, wouldn't it? She could just fall asleep and have him stew in his own urges. Before she could give him an answer, he scooped her up and rushed them to his room. He put her down on the bed, tucked her in and got into bed himself, snuggling up against her. "Nap time," he sighed happily.

Bella was surprised. She didn't know what to think, but thought the gesture was endearing and allowed it for now. Kol hadn't had any physical contact for nearly a century and she felt for him. And she was super tired. Shifting a little so that she was more comfortable, she sighed happily and fell back to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Bella woke up the following morning in an empty bed, but with breakfast waiting for her on the nightstand. Oh, why not? She lazily stretched herself out and propped herself up against the pillows before pulling the tray with breakfast into her lap. There was a note from Kol on it saying: 'I do wish you would reconsider for tonight, if only to annoy Elijah!'

She smiled at that. Now, if he asked like that, how could she refuse?

Bella had her breakfast and then went to get some of her clothes before she quietly left the house to go back home and see if she had anything formal to wear. By the time she arrived at her house, though, Kol was sitting on her couch on the porch with a grin on his face. "Sneaking out, are we?"

"Morning," she replied as she opened her door.

"Walk of shame, me thinks. Is that what you call it these days?"

Bella snorted. "A walk of shame is when you actually have sex and sneak out in the same clothes you wore the day before."

"Ah, something Rebekah might do then," he mused as he got to his feet. "You know, I left early this morning to get to the store, had a lovely chap put some music on this device," Kol held up an iPod. "Of course, the music you spoke of is on here as well. The Beatles are masterful."

"Dated, too," Bella reminded him. "Although some people worship them. They say that their sound inspired so many others that nowadays we're surrounded by music. Even the electronical and overly poppy things."

"Still, I do enjoy them very much," Kol replied as he followed her, but was stopped on the threshold. "Interesting."

"To keep me safe," Bella smiled and turned around to face him. "After all, my landlords are vampires. One being crazy and off his rocker, the other one unpredictable but harmless. No one who can't cross the threshold on their own accord gets in."

"Very well, then what are we doing here?"

"I need to see if I have something fancy to wear for tonight," Bella said, teasing him as she walked to her closet. "But I'm afraid that my wardrobe isn't suitable for a ball."

"Brilliant! Then let's go into town and find you a gorgeous dress."

Bella smiled as she walked back to the door and stood in front of him. "Or… I could go naked."

"You wouldn't dare," he laughed nervously.

"Why? Do you think that my body won't be beautiful enough?"

"I've seen your fuzzy pyjamas, darling, I doubt you're an exhibitionist."

She took a step outside and pulled him closer, her hand trailed up into his hair as the other traced his jaw with a finger. "All this sexual tension between us…"

"You need to stop before I'm going to do something I'll regret…" he softly warned her. "Well, I might not regret it. Likely not."

"It's been too long, huh?" she booped his nose with her finger. "What if I told you that it would be fine?"

"That's not really lady like, Bella, you hardly know me."

"Who says I'm a lady?" She pulled his head down and brushed his lips with hers. "I'm still a person of flesh and blood with itches to scratch… And you were right last night," she said in a whisper. "You are insanely hot and you feel good…"

"Stop or I'll take you right here on this porch."

"How about you come inside instead?" She whispered, looking up at him. "Inside my house and inside of me."

~o.O.o~

Oh, having sex with someone she'd just met wasn't something she made a habit out of. In fact, this was the first time it ever happened but it felt right. She felt safe with Kol and they both needed to get it out of her system. She didn't even care at this point if he'd move on to someone else. At least she could say that she had sex with an Original Vampire and that it had been amazing.

But something told her that Kol was going to be around for quite some time, that he was indeed the person she'd been looking for to guide her on her journey, and all it needed was a little more time, seeing as despite his enthusiasm about her being different, he didn't know that much more than Klaus did. Or the books that she had read.

She had felt the connection while he was still in his coffin, but she truly felt safe with him. Not on edge, not mildly safe or in danger, but he was like a warm blanket to her, if she had to compare the feeling to something. All Bella knew was that at this moment, she was feeling relaxed as hell.

"You do surprise me, Bella Swan," Kol pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head.

"Don't think I do this on a regular basis…"

"What? Have sex? That's a shame."

"No," she laughed. "Having sex with someone I literally just met."

"Do you regret it? Because I don't."

"Me neither," she sighed happily. "Can we just lie here for awhile? I don't think I can walk."

"I don't have any better place to be, do you?"

"No," she smiled at him before softly kissing him. Oh yeah, best sex ever.

~o.O.o~

When it was lunch time, Kol and Bella decided it was enough time spent in bed. Kol went back home because he needed to be fitted for a tuxedo and Bella reluctantly went shopping for a dress. What the hell did people wear to a ball? She went to a coffee shop to stuff her face with some food and drink coffee while she thought long and hard. What would her dad say about her going to a ball, to actually have to dance? Or her mother, even? There was no doubt that both her parents would love a picture of her in a beautiful dress.

She fiddled with her phone for a while, contemplating her options. Renée would interrogate her, for sure. Charlie? He'd be proud that his baby girl got invited to a ball of seemingly important people.

She was going home. The whole idea of the ball was scary to her, it would make her visible and participating. Kol, Klaus and Myriam would likely be disappointed, but it was for the best. Dressing up was not her thing. She paid for her food, headed to the supermarket and then went straight home. It was going to be a nice night in with a glass of wine and her computer.

Bella walked into Damon as she was walking to her home. "Quite the stunt you pulled last night," he said as he followed her. "I had it under control. You didn't need to come in and save my ass."

"I didn't come in to save your ass."

"And what's with the pyjamas? Were you staying at Klaus'? Are you insane?"

"Myriam and Klaus are my friends. Myriam and I were having a girl's night. I don't care what beef you have with them or they with you. They're my friends."

"Since when! You could have told me you were in contact with the biggest, baddest vampire in the world!"

She smiled then. "I didn't know it was them and even so, it's not my problem. You and Stefan got everyone in the mess that you're in now. Including Elena. I've told you this many times before."

"I would have thought you were on our side."

"There are no sides, Damon," she sighed as she put her bag down on the porch. "I'm not involved in anything you or Klaus is doing."

"He could kill you."

"I'm more afraid of Stefan," she countered before looking up at him. "Are we done?"

He narrowed his eyes on her. "If you know what's best for you, I suggest you stay here until we've killed Klaus and dealt with Esther."

"If you know what's best for you, I suggest you don't make idle threats, Damon Salvatore. You're my friend, but do not think I will not hesitate to defend myself," she then opened the door and walked inside.

It was then that Damon caught a strong whiff of sex and Kol Mikaelson. "You had sex with an Original?!"

"Go away!" Bella slammed the door in his face. She could hear Damon yell at her from the door but she choose to ignore it and eventually he stomped off. She put her groceries away and booted her computer before she heard something coming out of her closet. Had a small animal made its way into her home?

She carefully opened the doors to her hanging closet and blinked at the sight before her. There were five fancy dresses hanging in there that weren't there before. Now, sometimes things like that just happened to her and there was always a note somewhere saying that her grandfather H had given it to her. When she was little, she always believed that it had been her parents who had done it, as she'd never met this illustrious grandfather. Yes, she had met her mother's father, but Charlie's father was elusive.

However, now that she was alone and with everything that was going on in her life right now, she believed that it was real. A fairy godfather, perhaps? Was she a fairy herself?

She let out a breath as she pulled out the dresses one by one and each more beautiful than the other. "I guess I'll be going to the ball after all…" Bella muttered in awe as the final dress she pulled from her closet just spoke to her. It was a sleeveless, one shoulder dress made out of chiffon. While the other dresses had a more outspoken and clear color - or white, even, she liked this one as it was a soft lavender color and it was floor length.

It was then when a pair of heels appeared and a box with jewelry where she found the note she'd been looking for.

 _Enjoy your ball, my beautiful granddaughter. I am proud of who you're becoming. The accessories are family heirlooms, treat them well. All my love, H._

Bella surprised herself then, by feeling all girly and giddy when she looked at her presents. She always figured herself to be more of a tomboy, never wearing dresses or skirts and always pants with comfy tops but the dress was perfect, the heels didn't look that dangerous and even the bracelet and necklace got her excited. She felt like a real life Cinderella!

She drew herself a bath and collected her 'make pretty' stuff before enjoying herself for an hour or so. Bella then got into a t-shirt and made dinner for herself while answering some emails on her computer and maybe writing a few paragraphs on a story she'd been working on but hadn't worked on in quite some time.

Damon came back to yelling at her door, which she ignored by blasting some loud music while she was getting ready. She used an internet tutorial on how to pin her hair up and how to do her makeup, she wanted to be a complete picture. Oh yes, she was in full girl mode and loving it.

Right before she was leaving, her phone rang, it was Charlie. "Hi dad!"

" _Hi pumpkin, how are you doing?"_

Bella giggled then. "I'm going to a real, old fashioned ball."

" _Well, you're in the South, I'm surprised this is your first ball."_

"I wasn't even going until Granddad H turned my closet upside down and gifted me a beautiful dress."

" _Bella, your grandfather is not magical."_

"He is to me, how else would you explain it?" Bella shrugged. "I feel so pretty."

" _Well, send me a picture and we'll talk tomorrow. I don't want to keep you from having fun."_

"I will," Bella replied. "I love you."

" _I love you too, sweetheart. Enjoy yourself."_

On the way to Klaus' home, she loudly sang along with the CD playing in her car; she wasn't ashamed to admit that it was Taylor Swift, which was all Damon's fault, really. He had borrowed her car once and she never felt like changing the CD's out after he used it. Even the sad songs were catchy as hell.

As she drove on the driveway, she could feel how her stomach started to flutter. She was getting nervous again. While most of what she felt was excitement, a part of her was filled with dread and she couldn't quite shake it. Bella wasn't going to allow it to dampen her spirits, she looked hot.

Oh, Bella shouldn't have been surprised that when she entered the house that everything was decorated, the grand staircase was covered in fairy lights, but not overly intrusive, just really classy. There were already a couple of people, she spotted the mayor, for one.

"You made it!" Myriam broke free from Klaus and went over to Bella to give her a big hug, making other people's heads turn with her exuberance. "Wow, where did you get that dress?"

Bella chuckled. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

"My magical grandfather?"

"But you're not a witch."

"He is. Maybe. I don't know." Bella shrugged. "Point is, I feel pretty."

"Oh no, darling," Kol's voice sounded before he maneuvered himself between Myriam and Bella. "You look absolutely stunning," he gently took her hand and kissed it. "My beautiful Goddess."

"Stop," Bella giggled, blushing furiously. "No one will notice me beside you, look at you, so handsome in your suit."

"Oh barf," Myriam rolled her eyes. "Be careful you two, or you might tear each other's clothes off right here and have sex on the floor in the midst of all these people."

"Now that's a thought," Kol smirked.

"I need a drink," Bella shook her head, laughing.

Kol offered his arm to Bella and she took it to lead her towards the bar. "For a moment I was afraid you wouldn't come tonight," he said truthfully. "But this is a special night, we're celebrating the reunion of our family. I wouldn't want you to miss this." He handed her a glass of champagne.

"I'll be on my best behaviour."

Kol smirked at that, before he spotted Damon with Mayor Lockwood. "Oh look, it's your landlord."

"Ugh. He was insufferable today," she said as she took a sip of her drink. "He doesn't like it that I've been spending my time here. He certainly didn't appreciate it when he caught a whiff of you after I opened my door."

A mischievous twinkle appeared in Kol's eyes. "Let's have some fun, shall we?" he said before walking them over to Damon and the Mayor. "Mayor Lockwood. We haven't formally met. Kol Mikaelson," he said as he kissed her hand with a smile on his face. "I hope your lovely town embraces us just as much as we plan to embrace it. Have you met my date, Bella Swan?"

Damon looked beyond pissed off. "Damon Salvatore," he said as he extended his hand. "Have we met?"

Kol smirked at him, not taking his hand to shake it. "I've met a lot of people, and you don't particularly stand out," he said before looking at Bella. "Now, if you'd excuse us, there are more people I'd like to introduce myself and Bella to."

Damon grabbed Kol by the arm as they passed. "You leave her alone," he said in a low, threatening voice. "She might not recognize danger, but if you know what's best for you, you're going to keep your paws off of her."

Kol looked at the hand on his arm and then on Damon. "Now, young Salvatore, making empty threats isn't something you should do because would you follow through?"

"I already told him that," Bella added.

"You were supposed to stay home," Damon hissed at her.

"I _am_ home." She swatted Damon's hand away from Kol and allowed Kol to take her somewhere else.

"You're home? Does this mean you're moving in?" Kol smiled at her. "Because I have just the bed for you if you don't mind a room mate."

"I already have a closet with some of my clothes in the library, Myriam got me a laptop to work on my stories, doesn't that mean I've already moved in?" Bella replied cheekily before she looked over her shoulder to see the Salvatores fawn over Elena who had just entered. "I love the guest house, it's been my home for quite some time, but I know what they think about you. I'm impartial to it all, but they're…"

"Children."

"I've watched them since they came back to Mystic Falls and they make the same stupid mistakes over and over again. The wrong choices."

"Just say the word, darling, I'm sure Niklaus wouldn't mind if you'd permanently moved in."

"Elijah's going to gather everyone on the stairs," Myriam said as she joined Bella and Kol. "He told us to stay off the stairs while he addresses the people gathered because it's family only."

"Well, that's rubbish," Kol said disgusted.

"It was your mother's wish."

"We need to respect her rules, unfortunately. Had it been only Elijah's wishes, then I would have said to screw it," he kissed Bella on the cheek. "I'll return shortly."

"I don't trust Esther," Myriam said quietly. "She forgave Klaus for killing her, but I think she's up to something. It's just a feeling, you know."

"Is it because they're all basically worshipping her?"

"I think they're genuinely afraid of her. Besides, Finn's been following her around all day like a lost puppy," Myriam continued. "Today I had to break up a fight between Klaus and Kol because Klaus was threatening to dagger him again."

"Klaus can threaten all he want. Hell, he can even dagger Kol again, as long as he knows that I will undagger Kol and turn Klaus into the little puppy that he is."

Myriam chuckled. "Weren't you supposed to observe?"

"No one touches my Kol and gets away with it."

"Spoken like a true Mikaelson," Myriam said amused and took a sip of her champagne. "But don't forget, if you touch my Klaus, I'll be coming after you."

"And I'll turn you into the little trash panda that you are."

"Yeah, there's no fighting you, is there?" Myriam laughed.


	9. Chapter 9

"Welcome, thank you for joining us," Elijah spoke, a smile dancing on his lips. Bella could see them all standing so majestically on the stairs from where she and Myriam were standing and it was hard not to drool. Kol looked so hot. "You know, whenever my mother brings our family together like this it's tradition for us to commence this evening with a dance. Tonight's pick is a century old waltz. So if all of you would please find yourselves a partner and please join us in the ballroom."

When Esther descended the stairs to join her family, Bella felt a knot tighten in her chest. She identified the feeling as the same one that came into the house the night before, darkness and hate. Myriam was right not to trust her. Something wasn't right about Esther.

"You do dance, don't you?" Kol smiled at Bella as he offered his arm to her. "It would be incredibly silly for a Mikaelson to have someone who doesn't dance."

"Don't worry. Renée forced me to learn the classics, so just lead and I follow."

Okay, so the waltz was trickier than Bella had believed it to be, but Kol was a good leader and she was grateful that when the change of partners happened, that she was now dancing with Klaus. "I must say, Bella, apart from Myriam, I'd think you're the most beautiful woman present this evening."

She let out a slight giggle. "Thanks, Klaus."

"Now, what's what I heard about you moving in? Trouble at the Salvatores?"

"Not really, unless having Damon yell at your door for you spending time with his enemies," Bella let out a breath. "As if that would change my perception of him."

"You already have some of your items in this house, it'd be quite easy to gather the rest of your belongings and settle in here," he replied with a kind smile. "Myriam would certainly love the company and I believe you and Kol are quite interested in each other?"

She blushed furiously then.

"It's alright, love," Klaus said amused. "The supernatural community works differently than the human one. Granted, it would make it harder for me to put him back in his box."

"Don't you dare."

"Not to worry, our mother has forgiven me for my sin against her, I suppose I could only extend that forgiveness to your beloved Kol for his indiscretions," he smiled at her before turning around and having her end up with Kol again.

"Hello again, my beautiful Goddess."

"Stop that," Bella snickered. "You're making me feel like a real girl!"

"Well, you are, if you haven't noticed. You have beautiful hair and some amazing breasts…"

"Kol."

They danced some more before Rebekah interrupted their moment together. "Excuse me, can I borrow my brother for a moment? You can sit and rest your tiny little feet before he stomps on them again."

"Bekah, be nice," Kol pleasantly said as he escorted Bella off the dancefloor. "I will find you, go enjoy yourself, Bella. Observe."

She stuck out her tongue to him and headed to the bar instead so she could keep an eye on Kol as he spoke to Rebekah. Bella had always managed to avoid direct contact with Rebekah even when she was in school. Mainly because of the fact that Rebekah was trying her hardest to always fuck with Elena and her friends and with Damon and Stefan. From the stories she'd heard was that Rebekah was a lady, but a dangerous snake from within. She loved manipulating people in getting exactly what she wanted. That mischievous smirk on Kol's face told Bella that the two youngest Mikaelsons were up to no good.

Bella finished her glass of champagne and quietly made her way outside, feeling the need to breathe. Much to her surprise there was a horse with a carriage standing in the driveway. She hadn't seen it upon her arrival and the horse was pretty. She gently scratched the horse between his ears and the horse gave her a nudge with his nose. "Careful now, this dress was a gift," she said softly. "Would be a shame if you ripped it, wouldn't it?"

She stood out of sight of the door, and saw Kol slip out to where the cars were, not long after that, Rebekah and Matt exited the house and that's where she put two and two together. If Rebekah couldn't hurt Elena the normal way, she'd go after her friends. Matt was the only one who was human and easily killed.

They were choices made by them. Bella wasn't supposed to poke her nose into that, nor did she want to witness it, should something happen to Matt. After all, for a while Bella had hoped that Matt would be her boyfriend and that never happened. Matt was too kind. Too human. Too good.

A few minutes later Rebekah and Matt walked back inside and Bella let out a sigh of relief. Nothing had happened to good Matt. Kol, however, looked furious. Almost as if Rebekah had given him a present before breaking it. "Hey," Bella called out to him.

"Bella, are you insane? What are you doing outside in the cold?"

"Petting the horse," she replied before walking over to Kol and looped her arm through his. "Are you and Rebekah up to no good?"

"She promised me a kill."

"Matt's an innocent."

"I want to kill something," Kol pouted before walking back inside with Bella on his arm. "Mother's about to make a toast, shall we join them?"

Bella watched the servers as they were handing out glasses of pink champagne. Supposedly pink, but it had a dark glow around it, it was something it wasn't supposed to be. Much like when Klaus had used Alaric as a meat shell. However, when she touched her glass, the darkness disappeared. "Can I try something?" Bella asked as she handed Kol her glass and took his instead, it also cleared up.

She quickly scanned the crowd for Klaus. He wasn't hard to spot with Myriam's fiery red dress, and pulled Kol with her as she made her way over to Klaus and Myriam. Would Bella have enough time for all the glasses to be made clear to her? Likely not. "Here, allow me," she said, handing her clear champagne to Klaus and took his muddled one before that one cleared up and she switched with Myriam.

"What's this all about, love?" Klaus asked amused. "Are we playing musical chairs with glasses?"

"Where's Elijah?" Bella asked as she looked around. But even before she could spot him, Esther demanded the attention of everyone in the room.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," Esther spoke, a smile on her face. "Waiters are coming round with champagne. I invite you all to join me in raising a glass. It provides me with no greater joy than to see my family back together as one. I'd like to thank you all for being part of this spectacular evening. Cheers!"

Bella had no idea what Esther was up to, but at least Kol and Klaus would be safe from it. They'd have to deal with the fall out later. There simply hadn't been enough time to get to Rebekah and Elijah. She didn't care about what would happen to Finn, she had already made her opinion about him clear enough when he was still boxed up.

She wasn't supposed to interfere, Bella knew that, but she had a feeling that she had to or she'd lose her new family.

"Darling, you look as if you see fire burning," Kol said sweetly. "What's going on?"

"I think Esther messed with the champagne. Don't worry, yours were safe. Hence the swapping."

"You nullified the effects?"

"I think I did, yes."

"Do you know what Esther's up to?"

"No. Maybe it wasn't Esther after all. All I know is that the champagne was bad," she sighed then. "I shouldn't have interfered."

"Let's proceed with caution," Klaus sneered. "I want to see what she's up to before I -"

"What? Kill her again, Nik?" Kol retorted. "We should have another witch bind her powers so we can have our mother back without having to worry about what she might do!"

"Hey, calm down," Bella gently rubbed Kol's arm. "Walk it off."

Kol let out a sound of frustration before he did just that. "I really need to kill something!"

"Are you sure you want to date that?" Klaus asked amused.

"Don't you start," Bella warned him. "You should be worried, someone just tried to poison you or spell you or whatever with that champagne."

"Let's not tell the rest of my siblings until we know for sure," he smiled pleasantly, nodding in the direction of his mother who was approaching him. "Mother," he greeted her. "I truly have missed all of this, enjoying a nice ball with family and friends."

Esther smiled then. "And I am happy that you have found your soulmate, Niklaus. You deserve some happiness in your life."

"Have you met Bella, Kol's date?"

"I'm afraid I have not," Esther sighed. "I know that you talk about her, a lot, but I haven't seen her. Whenever someone points her out to me, there's an empty space, almost as if I have just missed her. But do tell her to come see me."

"I'm right here," Bella said, giving a slight wave. "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Mikaelson."

"Oh, Bella, I doubt mother would want to be called that," Klaus chuckled. "Mrs. Mikaelson, please," he rolled his eyes at her.

"Niklaus?"

"Oh, you heard her, mother," he said, pointing at Bella. She was standing right next to Myriam, not easy to be missed.

Esther smiled then. "You're all in on the joke, aren't you? Pretending my boy has a date to cheer me up?"

"But she's right here," Myriam said confused.

It was then when Bella caught on. "Holy shit."

"What?"

"I choose to ignore the dark feeling when I came here. I guess it made me ignored by her, as well," she said with a slight giggle. "Awesome new superpower."

"Well done, Niklaus. You and your siblings have pulled off the ultimate prank on your mother," Esther said amused. "Now, please excuse me while I retreat to my room."

"Damon!" Stefan cried out as he ran to the door and opened it. "Damon! Are you crazy?"

Curious, Bella, Klaus and Myriam headed to the door, just like the rest of the family and Bella's heart sank when she saw Kol outside on the ground, not moving.

"Maybe a little," Damon replied as he was pushed aside by Bella who sat down on the ground and cradled Kol's body. "Far be it for me to cause a problem," he said before he walked off.

"Don't you walk away, Damon Salvatore," Bella threatened him.

"Oh, he'll be alright, Bella, I merely broke his neck," Damon said angrily. "Maybe you should open your eyes and see what you've gotten yourself into before you get in so much trouble that I can't save you from. Like Elena."

"I am not Elena," she growled. Oh, she had promised not to use her gift but it was so tempting to give Damon what he deserved right now. "I will deal with you later!"

"I'm evicting you!"

"I don't care! You don't just go snapping other people's necks!" She turned her attention back to Kol, gently caressing his face.

A few minutes passed before Damon spoke up again. "Bella, for me to leave, I'd actually have to be able to." Bella decided to ignore him.

"Come on, love," Klaus said as he took Kol's body and hoisted him over his shoulder. "I'll bring him upstairs where you can play nurse. Then, in the morning, we will collect your belongings and bring them here."

"What about me!" Damon cried out to Bella's retreating back. "Bella!"

"Oh, I have plans," Myriam grinned as she walked to Damon. "You really wanted to be on the receiving end of Bella's wrath, didn't you? Well, since you can't move from this spot… how about I dress you up like santa? Or a snowman?"

"Leave me alone."

"Yeah, no," Myriam said as she poked Damon's arm. "Bella's been defending you towards Klaus. Said you were off limits because you've always been kind to her. And you repay her by snapping Kol's neck?"

"He'll live."

"You won't, if you continue this. So, santa or snowman?"

Damon grinned then. "Neither," he said before fleeing off as Bella seemingly let him go.

"Jerk," Myriam muttered as she walked back inside.

~o.O.o~

Kol awoke a few hours later, Bella had his head in her lap and her laptop was resting on top of him as she was writing. It was the middle of the night, everyone had gone home and were in bed, although Bella was pretty sure that Klaus and Myriam were having a great time.

"Am I a table now, darling?"

Bella snorted as she removed her laptop from him and softly kissed him. "Welcome back."

"Can I kill him?"

"No," she sighed as she toyed with his hair. "But you're in trouble with Elijah and your mother for making Damon fight you."

"I didn't do anything, it is he who attacked me for no reason," Kol whined. "And I still want to kill something, I'm hungry."

"You can have a taste of me if you want. Just don't kill me."

"That's boring. I want the thrill of the hunt, the chase."

"I could drive off in my car and speed?"

Kol laughed, then. "Darling, your barrel of a car doesn't even reach 100 miles an hour on top speed because it will have fallen apart by then."

"Don't mock my car," she smiled and kissed him. "But I'm serious, if you want some blood and are too lazy to get up…"

"Nope," he shook his head. "Just because you're mortal doesn't mean I'll use you as my personal blood bag. I respect you too much for that." He sat up and pushed a strand of hair out of her face. "I am going to get changed and then I'm going for a little hunt."

"Wait," she said as she got up to get her phone. "My dad wanted a picture of me in this dress. How about we send him a picture of us together?"

"What?" Kol said sheepishly. "So that he can do a background check on me? Darling, I'm a vampire. There's no checking to be done."

"Fine," she shrugged as she handed Kol her phone. "Then take a picture of me. I can't believe you're going to miss out on showing my dad how handsome you are. Please? I want to get out of this dress."

Kol took several pictures of them together, and Bella on her own before he changed in something more comfortable and headed out. Bella struggled to get out of her dress and then got changed into her pyjamas before sending a picture to her father. It was likely he was already asleep, so she didn't expect him to text her back.

 _You look lovely, sweetheart. Your date is quite the handsome fella, when am I going to meet him?_

Laughing, she put her phone down and crawled back in bed to finish the chapter she was working on so she could share it before she went to sleep.

When Kol hadn't returned in the morning, Bella went out and started to pack up her things in the Salvatore guest house. She had loved spending her years there, and she could have dealt with crazy Stefan, but to have an added complication of a crazy Damon, she no longer wanted to stay there.

Esther couldn't see her, so Bella felt a little bit safer to stay in the house after that discovery. For as long as Esther would stay around, Bella could tolerate being the invisible girl. She put on some music and spent a couple of hours packing. Not that she had a lot of things; she was going to throw out all of her school stuff anyway, but sometimes she'd come across of something that would bring back some good memories of her childhood and she allowed herself to reminiscence.

She was glad that Damon and Stefan weren't home while she was doing this. She felt bad about abandoning them, especially since Damon had looked out for her for such a long time, but it was time. And it wasn't like she was leaving Mystic Falls, she just knew that the Mikaelsons were more equipped and capable of looking after her than the boys were due to their experiences and their own thirst for knowledge.

It took her a few trips to the car, but she managed to get everything in. Since she now had a laptop to work on, she had copied everything on her computer to an external hard drive and formatted the computer so nobody could use it without a fresh installation. Not that her computer was worth anything, it was old.

She had found the deed to the guest house with her name on it and crossed out her name so that the Salvatores could enter it again. Leaving the keys on the porch, she went back to her car and drove to her new home.

Much to her surprise, she found most of the house empty, or everyone was in hiding. Apart from Myriam. Myriam had been waiting for Bella to come back. "They all know about what Esther's been doing," she said as she carried a few boxes in. "Finn and Esther are in the wind and Kol, Elijah and Klaus are trying to find them."

"What is it that she's been doing, anyway?"

"Yesterday's champagne was indeed part of a spell. Esther tried to link all of her children together, but since you intervened with Klaus and Kol…" Myriam smirked then. "She actually accused me of meddling with it. Which is stupid because I'm a vampire and not a witch."

"That bitch."

"In her mind, her children are abominations and she's responsible for creating them. She wants to end them. But you know, if one Original vampire dies, their entire line goes along with them. In a way, I'm grateful that you managed to save Klaus from the spell because I like my life too much."

"I'm sure he won't get hurt."

"Oh, I'm not worried, but just in case," Myriam shrugged. "Hey, after we've put all your boxes inside, want to go out for dinner instead of staying in? We could go to something other than the Mystic Grill. Oh, maybe even go out of town!"

"Alfredo's is nice."

"Then to Alfredo we go!"


	10. Chapter 10

Later that evening, Klaus held a family meeting. Everyone was there, except for Finn and Esther, who had fled after their spell could no longer be cast. "Mother's spell is still in place," Klaus said as he sipped his bourbon. "Even though Kol and I are fortunate that Bella intervened, I do not wish to see Esther destroy us. She can do whatever she wants to Finn. I'm going to do everything in my power to see that spell destroyed, you have my word, Elijah."

"If your little tramp had been a little bit faster, we wouldn't be in this situation now, would we?" Rebekah quipped. "She managed to save you two but no, not us."

"Gee, I wonder why," Kol snorted.

"Mother is still out there. She'll be back, of that I'm sure," Elijah spoke quietly. "She may return in one shape or another. Perhaps now is not a good time to house a superpowered abnormality in our midst."

"That's not all," Rebekah sighed. "While I was baby sitting Elena, I took some pictures in the cave where the natives drew our story. There was another White Oak tree."

"What!" Kol blurted out. "Another?"

"Three hundred years after we fled back to the Old World. And it's gone. We need to find it because even a splinter could kill us all," Rebekah added. "We may have temporarily gotten rid of our mother, but it's not over."

"Do you have a plan, Niklaus?" Elijah asked his brother.

"I have one, and I'm afraid our latest family member will not like the idea," he said, slightly amused as he looked over to Bella. "Do not turn me into one of your animals."

"I'm not getting involved," Bella said, throwing her hands up. "But where Kol goes, I go."

"Oh, that's quite alright then," he smiled. "That way you're safe out of everyone's reach! You deserve a break, Bella. I want you to accompany Kol to Denver, Colorado, to keep an eye on the youngest Gilbert, just in case the elder one tries to foil our plans. Jeremy hasn't met Kol yet, which is a great opportunity. You merely need to make sure that young Gilbert doesn't see you."

"But-"

"What if the reason for you to stay in Mystic Falls was Kol? It's obvious that you two are drawn to each other like moths to a flame. See this as an opportunity to learn more."

Kol put an arm around Bella and pulled her closer to him. "It'll be fun, darling. It won't be all work and no play. It'll likely be play all the time and a little bit of work," he then nodded to Klaus. "Whatever Nik needs."

"It's fine but all my clothes are in boxes and I don't know which ones," she then looked at Myriam. "I believe she hid a few of those boxes as well."

"I wanted you to explore the house more! A game!"

"We'll buy whatever we need in Colorado. Now, go pack your laptop. We shall be leaving tonight. But not in your car. It looks like it'll fall apart by just pointing at it."

"That's the second time you've insulted my car."

"I didn't realize you were keeping score, darling," Kol grinned and kissed her cheek.

~o.O.o~

Denver, Colorado was one of the places Bella had never visited with her mother and she enjoyed to discover it with Kol when he wasn't with Jeremy Gilbert, forging some sort of fake relationship with him to keep an eye out. Bella could spend hours in the Botanic Gardens, writing on her stories, answering emails and chatting with some of her followers. She made sure to stay in touch with Myriam through messenger as well.

Kol didn't want to re-live history but Bella was interested in Molly Brown's house. The unsinkable Molly Brown had lived in Denver and her house had been turned into a museum; stepping inside of it was almost as if you were stepping back in time, to the early 1900's. It helped that the guide was so well versed and made things even more interesting.

Kol took her on proper dates to the zoo and the aquarium when he wasn't shadowing Jeremy and at one point took her to the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. It was a beautiful church to see. She remembered seeing the church on the news when the pope visited. "This is a very young church. It's perhaps 100 years old. Before the church opened, lightning struck one of the spires, causing damage that they quickly repaired before they opened. A couple of years ago, another part of this minor basilica was struck by lightning."

"Maybe God doesn't like the flaunting of wealth. Wasn't he all about helping the poor?" Bella deadpanned as she looked around in awe of the detail that went into building the church.

"But any God needs places of worship. The Ancient Greeks had so many temples for their Gods and Goddesses and they wouldn't be cheap building it either; a beautiful house of worship means more worshippers, because people tend to like the pretty," Kol explained before pointing at the building. "Who knows? Maybe this church came in place of another one, a church that was smaller and couldn't hold that many worshippers? Maybe it was old and cold and drafty. Or leaking."

Bella narrowed her eyes on him. "You're so hammering on this God thing, are you secretly a bible thumper? Because then I'm out."

Kol shrugged. "It depends on the Gods. Mother often prayed to Frigg or Freya for her spells, Father was more of an Odin or Thor kind of guy," Kol then beamed proudly. "I, myself, found myself inspired by the tales of Loki, the trickster God."

"Somehow, I'm not surprised. At all."

"I don't believe that there's a singular God like in Christianity. I believe that anyone can believe what they wish to believe, mainly because I've seen so many variations of the same idea or belief on my travels. All those 'new' religions, like Islam or the Catholics, no, I don't believe that," he said before leading her out of the Church with a smile on his face. "Mainly because their holy books tell the same stories but with a twist. It's fiction to me. Or fan fiction, even, if you want to be harsh."

"Inspired by?"

"The Old Norse Gods. Or the Ancient Greek and Roman Gods. I do believe they're real."

"Why?"

"Because if God was real, and would be invoked by a witch, wouldn't you think that he'd smite her down for practising magic?" He answered cheekily. "If, for example, someone makes a love potion, they have to ask for Aphrodite's blessing. Why?"

"She was the Greek Goddess of Love?"

"Exactly. If she doesn't give her blessing, the potion won't work," Kol explained. "In the old days, they'd bring sacrifices and worship to the Goddess Demeter for a bountiful harvest."

"Nah, that's just climate change at work, bad luck."

"Ah! So you don't believe in something invisible such as Gods and Goddesses, but you do believe in bad luck?"

"Yeah, because that shit is real. It happens to you."

"What if it's not bad luck but a God or a minor deity punishing you for insulting them for some reason?" Kol sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Seriously, Bella, you're not a witch. I've been around witches and all kinds of magic for a very long time and they can't do what you can do unless they're destroying themselves for a burst of power, corrupting themselves to get that power and that's not you. You're not malicious. Well, you are in bed, but in general, you're the kindest heart I've ever come across."

"So you think I'm a Goddess?"

Kol smirked. "In the sheets? Definitely!" This earned him a smack on the arm from the tiny ball of annoyance next to him. "I think you're Goddess adjacent. Like a Nymph or a sprite. Maybe even a trickster like a fawn," Kol said as they were walking back to the city centre. "I'm still trying to find a way to test you to figure it out, but I'm coming up with nothing but to keep watching you, in awe of everything that you do. I do believe you've not grown into your powers yet and that perhaps even more is to come. In any case, to me, you're a Goddess. I already worship the ground you're walking on, what more do you want?"

"Ice cream, tiramisu. World peace...mostly ice cream right now."

"Alright, ice cream it is," Kol chuckled. "You're unbelievable, Bella Swan, you know that? You know about the existence of vampires, werewolves and magic even though you have ignored it for most of you life, but to believe in Gods?"

"You're a vampire, why do you believe in Gods?"

"I don't. I've only started to consider the possibility when I met you and what you've shown me of your powers so far. I ruled out everything that I know, so why not dive head first into the unknown and the only logical explanation?" He then laughed. "You should read Homer and the Odyssey. Oh my God, are those Gods scandalous!"

"So you think it's only the Greek Gods who are still around?"

"Well, no. If I have to believe they're still around, I suppose the Norse Gods are keeping to themselves and pelt banana peels at the Greek for being so strange. Then there's the Hindu Gods… well, I see them as the school's emo pack. Besides, I've seen a picture of your father, he looks like he has some Greek ancestry."

"I believe his grandmother was half greek," Bella said thoughtfully. "Although it could have been Italian. I don't know much about his family, though. His father is magical. He sent me that dress, remember?"

"Yeah, see, that doesn't make sense. You're not a witch, so it's not magic."

They went into the closest ice cream shop to get some ice cream and Kol checked his phone. "Ah, it's young Gilbert. He wants to meet up."

"Ice cream first," Bella said as she put a spoonful of tiramisu ice cream in her mouth. "It's so good!" she exclaimed as a soft moan escaped her lips.

"Don't moan or I'll drag you off to the public toilets for another kind of cream."

She giggled at that and happily continued to eat her ice cream. "You'll just have to make your way back home a lot faster today… maybe I'll have a surprise in mind for you!"

~o.O.o~

A few weeks later, Bella spent a few days in Mystic Falls again while Kol went on an errand run for Klaus. The Salvatores were trying to figure out whose Original bloodline ran through their veins and Klaus didn't want them to find out, or at least made it nearly impossible to find it out. It felt good to be home again, amongst friends and her old clothes. She had loved her time alone with Kol, though. Despite his talk about Gods and Goddesses, she loved that he was so passionate about things. He was so intelligent and kind and patient.

Oh, she knew that she was a terrible person for not believing him, not after all the rationalisation that he did. If vampires, witches and werewolves were real, why not the Ancient Gods? It was the lack of proof that did it for her. There was no real evidence other than stories and ancient ruins in Greece and Italy. Ruins that could have been made for normal people and merely misinterpreted by archeologists.

The Greek Gods could have been merely superpowered humans; in those days you'd be revered as a God if you knew magic or were capable of doing extraordinary things such as running really fast. She had learned about some of the myths and legends in school during history classes, but always found them hard to believe. Greek Gods had sex with everyone and anyone, including their cousins and had so many children, it was difficult to believe that they were real because where the hell were they all?

Had they moved on? Did they have a special God place like Valhalla or heaven? Granted, the concept of Greek Gods and Goddesses sounded so more plausible than just the one God, that she didn't believe in, either, but there was no way that one entity could oversee every aspect of life. Internet searches of 'are Greek Gods real' came up with the same load of crap as 'is God real', because there was no evidence. Only stories in a book and faith.

Bella wasn't sure why it bothered her so much. Maybe because of her adorable Kol not willing to give it a rest.

When Kol was done with his task, he returned home with a present for Bella, which made her all giddy. Opening the parcel, she blinked as she saw admittance tickets to every Disney park in the world. "What?"

"Let's travel the world and go to happy places. I'm sorry I went on and on about the Gods thing and from now on, you won't hear anything about it from me."

"You bought these to apologize to me?"

"Too much?"

Bella laughed and softly kissed him. "Yes, but I'd love to go," she kissed him again. "Apology accepted."

"Really? No feelings of wanting to stay in Mystic Falls or stay in the United States?"

"Nope. My place is with you. I think everything will be okay if I stay with you," she crawled into his lap and kissed him again. "I'm just surprised that Klaus hasn't killed any of the Salvatores yet."

"But then he'll take away our entertainment," Kol mused. "We simply need to drain them from vervain, because those idiots take it on a daily basis, and compel them for a little harmless fun."

"Or, I could turn them into an animal and have them end up as roadkill."

"Bella, I'm shocked," Kol laughed. "Very well, if you want to kill them, let's go."

"No," Bella straddled his waist and kissed him, hard. "They're not our problem right now. They're still Klaus' problem and you're free to do whatever you want."

"Would you like us to leave for Disney right now?"

Bella grinned as she wiggled her ass a little bit. She could feel how he was definitely interested in her. "Maybe tomorrow," she whispered in his ear. "Right now I want something very simple…"

"Uhuh," he smiled at her. "I see where this is going."

"Do you?"

"To the bedroom!"

~o.O.o~

It was like as if they were lost in time as they travelled from park to park, from city to city. Lost in the moment. Enjoying themselves. While Kol had been quite tame when they were in Denver, on their travels Bella discovered just how wild he could be. There were parties and drunk days. There were sex parties. Bella hadn't been participating and thus, Kol neither, but it was fun to watch other people have sex. Enticing. There were dance clubs and classy jazz clubs, he took her everywhere to have fun and it was, for the most part.

Unfortunately, Bella wasn't immortal and did need her rest so after six weeks of partying and ringing in the New Year naked on a private beach somewhere warm, Bella begged for a time out. Kol's solution? He took her to a spa to get pampered and oh, she enjoyed that very much.

It was near the end of January when Selene, one of Kol's witches that he befriended after he was undaggered, contacted Kol about someone called Silas and Bella could tell that it scared him. He told her all about Silas, and how it was likely that everyone was looking for the cure to vampirism. By doing so, they would unleash the end of the world and he did not want that to happen.

He tried to make a joke of how Bella had once said that the Mikaelsons are Gods for being the first vampires and that if that was the case, Silas was a souped up Titan.

On their way back to Mystic Falls, Kol told more of the story; how magic always requires a balance. How Silas came to be and inevitably, the doppelgangers. How a small army called The Five were vampire hunters, but they also bore the hunter's mark, a map to Silas' whereabouts like a tattoo. How the young fucktwad of a Gilbert was now one of those Five and Klaus wanted him to complete the mark, leading him to the cure.

For pure selfish reasons, of course. He wanted to destroy it so that nobody could use it against him. Rebekah wanted it for herself to become human and the Salvatores wanted it for Elena, to turn her back into a human.

It was one mess they were going to return to, and after Kol was done updating Bella on what was going on, she merely smiled at him. "I'm here to observe."

"I knew you were going to say that," Kol smiled at her. "I'm curious what you'd do to Silas though, when push comes to shove, threatening us all."

"He sounds like a powerful dude. Wouldn't want to mess with him."

"He'd be no match for you, darling, I'm sure of it." He opened the door to Klaus' house and escorted Bella inside. "Niklaus, we're home!"

"Oh, that's not a good idea," Myriam greeted them and put an arm around Bella. "Come, food and then you can tell me all about your trip while we ignore the crashing and destruction of things."

"Huh?"

"Klaus isn't happy about the cure and thinks it's a danger. Kol doesn't care about the cure but thinks it's with something that's a danger so… yeah, those two are going to throw punches," Myriam looked over her shoulder to see Kol walk into the parlor. "So, how was the full off the leash Kol experience?"

"A trip," Bella chuckled as Myriam produced a carton of ice cream and two spoons. "I think I functioned on maybe four hours of sleep every night for six weeks straight but I didn't have the heart to say something about it. I mean, he has had to miss so many things over the years, I wanted him to experience it all to the fullest."

"Oh, it's not a good thing to indulge him," Myriam said with a warning tone. "He needs to be kept in check."

"No, he doesn't," Bella defended him. "Parties are great! It's not like he went on a rampage and killed an entire club or something. He knows how to behave and whenever he fed, it was discrete."

"You're saying that he learned to control his blood lust?"

Bella winced when the house shook as someone was being thrown against a wall. Did she really have to sit through this? "At least around me, yes. So apart from all this hunter and Silas crap, what have I missed?"

"Oh, Klaus nearly fell under some stupid werewolf girl's spell. I killed her. God knows what could have happened. Ew. It wasn't his fault, though. The girl was all over him, not really giving him any space."

"Oh gross," Bella wrinkled her nose.

"She didn't taste that great, either, no," Myriam stuck a spoon in the ice cream. "We haven't had sex for a couple of weeks now and it's getting harder and harder to resist."

"How long were you planning on denying yourself from Klaus' dick?"

"Don't turn it around and say I'm only torturing myself. He wants me just as bad," Myriam laughed. "He actually took out his frustrations on his hybrids after finding out that Tyler Lockwood made them all free of the sire bond and wanted to trot off with them. As it turns out, the werewolf that I killed for even attempting to fuck with my man, wanted to double cross them and use them for information about her family."

"How many did he kill?"

"All but Tyler. Twelve."

"And Elena's a vampire so he can't make new ones."

"Nope."

"You have to have sex with him before he explodes and does something stupid," Bella laughed as she put another spoonful of ice cream in her mouth. "Just tell him that I'll turn him into a donkey if he crosses the line again."

Myriam shrugged. "I think using Kol as a punching bag will do."

"Who says it's not the other way around?"

"Oh, please," she rolled her eyes at Bella before leaning back. "Who's winning?" she called out to the other room.

"ME!" Both Klaus and Kol answered.


	11. Chapter 11

Kol came home the next day with a big, goofy smile on his face. "Rebekah had me torture this professor who was after the cure and Silas. I did a great job at it too! Oh, Bella, we had so much fun!" His mood then turned sour and he started ranting and pacing across the library. Bella thought that was fun to watch. "Of course, he confirmed that Silas is indeed, real, and Rebekah didn't believe him either! How stupid is that? Silas will kill us all! Oh, and on top of that, he can raise the dead, too. He'll bring back everyone who died in his name, but did I forget to mention the fact that he'll kill us all? I can't allow this to happen, Bella, I can't. I value my life far too much to have it ended now."

"I believe you," she said calmly, still eyeing him as he paced. "It's going to be alright, Kol."

"It's not going to be alright, Bella. I'm scared and you should be scared too!"

"I'm not. I thought you said Silas wouldn't be a match for me?" She reminded him with a kind smile. "I won't let him hurt you. The moment he lays a finger on you-"

"It'd be too late because then we're all wiped out of existence!" He threw his hands up in the air. "You don't understand. Just leave me alone. I'll figure this out. I'm going to stop them all, even if it means killing them!" Kol then stormed out of the library, leaving behind a very confused Bella.

She didn't hear from him until he called her on her phone. " _First of, I'd like to apologize for my behaviour this morning. I was very frustrated and I shouldn't have taken it out on you."_

"That's okay, I'm just glad to hear your voice. Are you okay?"

" _Yes, I'm fine, darling. Now, secondly… I'm currently in a room with Damon Salvatore. He has a nice piece of wood sticking out of his chest that I'm telling him to push in further in just a moment. Should he be compelled, can I play with him?"_

Bella looked at Myriam, who was reading a book next to her before tiredly rubbing her eyes. "Yeah, sure, just don't kill him."

" _Thank you. I'll be back shortly, although I think I might be in a little trouble with my siblings when I'm done. Best for you to stay out of the way."_

"Got it."

" _Or perhaps be there so you can fight them off for me?"_

"You're a big boy, Kol," Bella laughed and shook her head. "What will he do? Dagger you? He knows I will pull the dagger out when he does."

" _I don't deserve you."_

" _Oh cut the romancy stuff already!"_

" _Shut up, Damon, I'm talking to my wonderful Goddess."_

" _Can I throw up?"_

"Don't kill him, Kol."

" _I won't."_

When Kol disconnected, Bella threw her phone on the couch. "He's freaking me out."

"Every once in awhile the Mikaelsons tend to do that. It's not just him. Klaus' crusade for the cure is driving me insane. I understand that he's paranoid, that others might use it against him, but seriously. Take a chill pill."

"At this rate, I will likely have to undagger him soon," Bella grumbled. "What can I do?"

Myriam shrugged. "Sucks to be an observer, huh?"

"I could do something but I don't know what I can do. I mean, I could turn them all in fluffy little bunnies for the rest of eternity but… is that truly a solution? Klaus, Rebekah, Kol and the scoobies choose to be on this path themselves. It wasn't forced upon them. Kol is genuinely afraid of Silas and nobody believes him because he's supposedly the ranting lunatic."

"Maybe you should get involved in all this. Gather all the information available, turn them all into animals, round them up in a pen and find the cure and Silas yourself. Kill Silas and hide the cure," Myriam suggested as she kept reading her book. "It's quite simple, really. Or are you afraid?"

"I have thought about it, but something's holding me back. Like… a little voice that says that needs to be played out for everyone to learn a lesson and that since I don't have control over my powers, anything could happen," Bella said quietly. "In fact, my instincts tell me that I shouldn't even be in Mystic Falls right now. It's that bad."

"Then why are you here?"

"Because of Kol."

Myriam put her book down and took Bella's hands. "Ever since you've started to experience your changes, you've listened to what your instincts told you. Just because you're in love doesn't change the fact that you're still on your own journey of discovery. Maybe all this partying and traveling with Kol, despite it being awesome, has thrown you off your own path."

"But I also feel that I need to be here. That there's a purpose. I shouldn't be here, but I need to be."

"Go out of town for a few days, see if that solves the problem. Or at least to get yourself on your own path again."

"But Kol…"

"Like you said, he's a big boy. He can take care of himself. Should Klaus dagger him, you'll be the first to know so you can come back and kick Klaus' ass."

Bella sighed and hugged Myriam. "Thanks."

"Just looking out for you, honey," Myriam winked at her. "Go pack."

Bella gathered some clothes and pyjamas and got into her truck. As she started to drive through town, she felt reluctance to leave, but also the drive to leave and she couldn't understand what was going on. If there was some sort of higher power, what did it want from her?

She was so conflicted while she drove that she didn't realize she had driven herself to the Salvatore boarding home. Bella felt too tired to actually turn around and leave, so instead, she parked her car, grabbed her bag and headed to her old little home, hoping that it was still empty.

Bella was surprised to find an envelope stuck to the door of the guest house. It was strange, because she had made it clear that she wasn't coming back, and Damon had evicted her with his words. Opening the letter, she couldn't help but smile.

 _Bella, this will always be your home. Damon and I haven't been the best versions of ourselves lately, but this will always be your home. Keys are under the mat. - Stefan._

 _P.S: just crossing out your name on the deed doesn't reverse ownership. Nice try, though!_

She hummed to herself as she took the keys and let herself into the house. Despite her having cleared it out, mostly, it looked even cozier than before. It was renovated and she had a new bed to sleep on. It was absolutely lovely and she couldn't help but feel sorry for Damon, whom she allowed to be Kol's toy.

Myriam was right, it felt good to be on her own for a little while, despite still having the feeling something bad was going to happen. She didn't even text Kol where she was, but it was likely that he knew. If Bella had to be honest, Kol's frenzy scared her and she knew that it was a good thing that he was immortal and invincible unlike the rest of the vampires, his behaviour would certainly get him killed if that wasn't the case. What scared her was that she couldn't ease his mind, because it was running on adrenaline and fear.

And maybe Myriam was right about not interfering, that it was something Bella just had to do to save everyone from doing stupid things; mainly because Bella had no interest in the cure or Silas, and that she could undertake the journey on her own, with a clear mind. However, the act reminded her of a rule she'd come across while roleplaying online and it was called godmodding. Being so super powerful to cancel out any other player and do what the hell you wanted. It wasn't nice. It was rude and disrespectful.

No, everyone currently on the path of Silas and the cure had chosen to go on it by themselves and Bella really needed to sit this one out.

It was amazing how easily she slipped back into her old habits; she went to the supermarket in the morning and spent all day writing and focusing her mind on the words as if she hadn't missed a beat. She lost time in her words as they flowed from her hands and as she replied to messages she'd received over the previous month from people who followed her stories.

It wasn't until a couple of days later when Bella was taking a shower before bed that something inside of her told her to go out. It wasn't just inside of her because after getting dressed and grabbing her things, she felt a wave of pain wash over her and it wasn't the good kind.

She didn't take the car and she had no idea in what direction she was going, where she was going to be lead, but allowed her feelings to guide her. She walked to the cemetery where she was crowded by the spirits who wanted to talk to her, begged her to raise them from the dead, to pass along messages to their loved ones. It disorientated her, she knew she had to keep walking. Closing her eyes and covering her ears with her hands, she marched through, the pain of the dead tugging on her heart.

The cemetery was behind the boarding house, which was funny because she hadn't noticed that before. Zach Salvatore had told her to stay away from the cemetery and now she was walking over it. The ruins of Fell's Church and the tomb were passed next, she still wasn't off the grounds. She could sense the surge of magic bubbling underneath the soil; Klaus had killed his mother there.

She passed the abandoned cottage where once a hundred witches were burned and buried and despite them gone now, didn't mean that there wasn't residual energy. And it didn't like Bella very much. She was propelled forward, off the property and it was then when Bella had a moment to breathe, as everything in her mind settled and the spirits of those gone had stopped following her.

Bella followed the road leading into town, cars passed her as she walked, a train of small creatures following her in her daze. Foxes, squirrels, mice. Sometimes an owl flew overhead, loudly hooting as if spurring her on. But she couldn't walk faster than she already was, Bella was a terrible runner and she didn't want to fall flat on her face.

By the time she arrived in the town's square, the sun had started to come up and as she didn't want to deviate from her path, she nudged the hurrying people around her aside without blinking. Animals were still following her, dogs were tugging on their leashes to join, cats were now in the trail as well; Bella didn't care what it looked like. Stranger things had happened in Mystic Falls.

She only briefly stopped to get herself something to eat, but had to eat it while walking as the animals were complaining when she sat down for a little rest. Bella wasn't tired, though. She felt determination grow and kept marching on while the animals looked out for any signs of danger.

It was only when she turned into the street that she knew where she was going; everything was leading her to the Gilbert House. Something had happened and it wasn't good. She started to walk a little faster now, still not running because she could break her neck if she fell, and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw that the front door had been kicked in.

The smell of burnt flesh wafted in her face and she coughed as she stepped inside. It smelled bad, as if they had roasted a pig inside the house. Bella made her way to the livingroom where Klaus stood, waiting. "Took you long enough," he snapped at her.

"Huh?" she shook her head, trying to clear the fog but it wasn't working. Everything registered, but she couldn't control it. "Stuck?"

"That blasted Bennett witch cast a spell to stop me from slaughtering them all after they killed Kol. They're now well on their way to find the cure, I guess!"

"Kol?"

Klaus narrowed his eyes on her. "Are you even here?" He walked over to her and knocked on her head. "Hello?" Klaus snapped his fingers in front of her to make her blink before the sound of animals distracted him. They were standing outside the line that he couldn't cross and was fascinated. "Bella, love? Did you bring your friends?"

"Where's Kol?"

Klaus merely pointed towards the kitchen and Bella followed his line of sight. It was then that she saw Kol's spirit sitting on top of the counter, anxiously bumping his feet against each other. "Took you long enough," he repeated Klaus' words to her and motioned for her to come over, and she did. "You can see me?"

"Of course I can," Bella smiled at him, cocking her head. "You're shimmering. Are you dead?"

Kol snarled then. "Hunter's curse or not, I'm going to kill baby Gilbert."

"How? You're dead."

"Who are you talking to?" Klaus demanded. "Kol?"

Bella turned around and sighed. "Would you please shush? It's hard enough for me to have to live with this slow ass lifting fog in my head, talk to you and your dead brother. So shush," she shot at him before turning her attention back to Kol. "You can't go and kill people, Kol. You're dead."

"You can bring me back to life."

"Not when you want to kill others to take revenge," she replied as she hopped on the counter to sit next to him. "I know you need to feed to stay alive and you like to kill for fun, but out of revenge?"

"Bella, he killed ME. It's the least he deserves. He and Elena had it all planned out. Do you want to know what happened? They attacked me with a butcher's knife after we fought through the house. Then hosed me down with water from the tap, and as you know, the water supply is tainted with vervain so it hurt like hell. Elena then stole the White Oak Stake from me and had Jeremy kill me. It bloody hurt and they need to pay."

She sighed and shook her head. "I just can't believe you're dead," she said in barely a whisper. "What am I going to do now?"

"I don't deserve to be dead, Bella."

"Says who?"

"Says me!"

"Bella, please," Klaus' voice sounded, he was practically begging. "Don't let Kol be dead. He's my little brother. He's a paranoid maniac and he likes killing things but he's my little brother and I failed in keeping him safe."

"Yeah," Kol snorted. "By not daggering me and stuffing me back in my box."

"You know I wouldn't let that happen to you," Bella looked at Kol's shimmering form. "Because you're good, you're better than wanting to take revenge. I understand that it's a part of your vampirism, I do, but-"

"Silas needs to be stopped."

"What about doing good with your second chance? Turn all that anger and angst into something more productive?"

"Oh please, I don't like Mary Sue vampires, why should I become one? No, Bella, life is to be lived to the fullest and that means getting even. Getting revenge. To feel everything so passionately that it burns inside of you. Fuelling a fire that you allow to consume yourself enough but not entirely. It feels good to hate so deeply and allow that as a basis to get even," Kol spat. "I'm a vampire. It's what I do. Get over it."

Bella wiped away the tears that had started to quietly roll down her cheeks. "Is that all you feel? The darkness?"

"Spending a thousand years with my siblings and in and out of the box like I'm some sort of toy or a dog to be put down makes me feel just that, yes. I deserve better. I deserve my freedom, I deserve my revenge and I deserve another chance."

"And you wouldn't do anything different with that chance?"

"No."

"For Gods sake, Kol, she's trying to see if you're worthy of another shot. I don't know what the bloody hell you're saying but it's not what she wants to hear!" Klaus said impatiently. "You know what? I don't care. Bella, you resurrect him right this instant or else!"

"Shut up!" Bella retorted and turned Klaus into a puppy before hopping off the counter and walked into the other room to find something to cover Kol's burnt corpse with. She didn't feel any different, just numb and sad. She understood where Kol was coming from, but she was afraid that if she'd unleash him into the world like this, hell was going to break loose. She wanted him back, she truly wanted him back and take him away from all of this, but he had chosen this destructive path himself and it hurt.

Bella found a blanket and returned to the kitchen where she gently covered Kol's body before she sat down next to him and lightly touched his scorched hair with her fingertips. "You know what I'm going to miss? I'm going to have to miss my best friend. My boyfriend. My person who cheers me up when I feel down. My person who doesn't give up on something because he's so passionate and it makes him so adorable. My person who is strong and protective even though I could likely kill him with my pinkie," she said with a slight chuckle, but because of her tears it sounded more like a sob. "I'm going to miss the one person who felt like home to me. I'm going to miss the person who laughed in the face of danger, even when the danger was his family. And most of all I'm really sad because he'll never get to hear me say 'I love you' to him."

She looked up to see Kol stare at her from his position on the counter, seemingly at a loss for words and tears in his eyes. Bella kept touching his hair gingerly, not wanting to break anything because that wasn't respectful.

"Bloody hell," he said hoarsely. "Bella… I am so sorry," Kol let out a breath, anger no longer evident in his voice, it had been replaced by guilt. He hopped off the counter to crouch down next to her, not taking his eyes off of her. "I don't deserve your kindness. I-I have done so many bad things in my life, massacred thousands, manipulated so many… and yet, here you are, kind."

"I was afraid for you when you went off like you had but I knew I couldn't stop you unless I'd physically prevent you from leaving. That wouldn't make me any better than Klaus or anyone who has hurt you in the past." She looked at him with a kind smile. "Even when you were daggered and in your coffin, I could just feel that you were a good person. I understand your thirst for revenge, I do. But there are more important feelings. Feelings that even Klaus doesn't deny they exist."

"You were afraid for me? Bella… Darling, the feelings that I feel for you make me afraid. Because of my temper. Because of my rage. When we were alone together, I went out during the night a lot, to feed, to get some release because I'm afraid, I suppose I've always been afraid, to hurt you. You're my person too, you know," he said with a cheeky smile. "You're always kind and protective of me towards anyone, especially my siblings and no one's ever done that for me. And that scares me because what if you decide to leave me one day? It'd break my heart and I'm not sure if I can take that." He took a deep breath. "I suppose my second chance started the moment I laid eyes on you and I screwed it up. I promise, I'm going to do better if you grant me a third chance."

Bella felt a warm light enter her body, so much so that it startled her and knocked her back against the cupboards.

"Look at you! You're glowing!"

"You can see that?" she asked him, although it wouldn't be too hard to miss, she was basically a light house at this point. "Oh… wow…" Bella could feel how something else took over and yanked Kol from the Other Side, only to push him back into his body. The light embraced him for just a short moment before he sat up and the blanket fell off of him.

Kol's clothes were charred and he was still stained by the fire, but he was back alive. Bella scrambled to her feet as she could feel how her body was changing on the inside and it felt funny. It felt out of this world. Klaus the puppy was making noises in the other room and as she moved through the barrier, she dropped it and changed Klaus back.

Bella was ready to leave Mystic Falls now, she was ready to go home. Almost like magic, she got swept off her feet by another force and disappeared, leaving two flabbergasted vampires behind.

"Bella! Come back!"


	12. Chapter 12

Bella wasn't sure what quite happened when she regained consciousness, all she knew was that she wasn't in Mystic Falls anymore. It took her awhile to register it, but it looked like Charlie's home in Forks, but not. Something was off. Sitting up from her spot on the couch, she looked around to see what was different and she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Ah! You're awake!" Charlie's voice sounded from outside. "Come join me on the beach!"

Beach? Yeah, that was new. Bella got up and when she stepped outside the backdoor, she could feel sand underneath her feet. "Dad? What's going on?"

Charlie smiled as he held out his hand to her as an invitation to join him watching the sea, basking in the sun. Not that Bella was complaining that for some reason Charlie's house had moved to a sunny destination, but it didn't make sense. She joined him, curiosity filling her mind. "Psyche investigated your soul and you're a good egg, Bella," Charlie smiled at her. "And you have no idea how glad I am to hear that."

She narrowed her eyes on her father. "You're my father, you should know me by now, why would you have someone investigate my soul? What is that even?" She then realized he was probably referring to a witch. "And since when are you aware of the supernatural?"

"Psyche. The wife of Eros. Or Cupid, if you like to refer to him as that. The Goddess of the soul and love, come on, Bells, keep up."

Her jaw dropped at Charlie's tone, it was impatient and a little belittling.

"I have to hand it to that vampire of yours; he was on the right track with calling you a Goddess adjacent and his whole idea about the Greek Gods," Charlie continued as he still gazed over the sea. "Your refusal to believe any of it was quite… strange to say the least, but I suppose without evidence, it's hard to believe that any of it was real." He then motioned with his hands to their surroundings. "Consider this your evidence."

"Am I in a coma? Dreaming?"

"Nope. Would you like me to tell you who you are? What you are?"

"Yes, please."

"Very well, but when you've learned the truth, you'll have several decisions to make," Charlie said as he held up his hand and a glass of wine appeared. Handing the glass to her, he started to tell her story. "I could start with the boring 'in the beginning' speech, but let's just say that we all owe our life to the Earth Mother Gaia. Eh, fuck it, she's my grandmother and Uranus, her son, is my grandfather."

"That's… fucked up."

"Don't you judge, you're dating a vampire," Charlie chided her, amused. "My father is Hyperion the Titan God of heavenly light. He married his sister Theia, Titaness of sorcery and the Goddess of sight. They had three children. Eos, Selene and myself, Helios or Sol, Titan god of the sun, a guardian of oaths, and the god of sight."

Bella blinked at that. Was her father insane? On drugs? If it hadn't been for their strange familiar reality, she would have believed he was ripe for a nursing home. "But you're my father."

"No, pumpkin. I'm your grandfather. Just like the other Titans and Gods, I had many children and one of them was my daughter Circe. I either fathered her with Hecate or Perse, I can't remember and neither do they, so… hey, she's mine. That's all that counts. Now, you may be interested to know that your mother is the Goddess of sorcery and skilled in the magic of transmutation, illusion, and necromancy. Does that sound familiar to you?"

Transmutation… well, she could turn people into animals and back. She hadn't had experienced the illusion part, and necromancy… well… she saw dead people and had just resurrected Kol. Of course it sounded familiar and Charlie - Helios - knew that.

"Circe is one of my problem children, I'm ashamed to admit that we've butted heads a lot of times and I even banished her to an island at some point. While she had a big heart, she had some darkness inside of her and used her powers more for bad than good. Now, I'm the last person to say that the Greek Gods were saints. We're not. Hell, according to Christianity we were the biggest sinners ever to exist," Charlie let out a slight chuckle. "Circe was well versed in her herbs and spells, you might even say that she originated witchcraft although most wiccans pray to Hecate. Circe poisoned her husband, a mortal king. Hmm… what else did she do? Oh yes, then there was her taking over the rule of her husband until she was finally deposed because of her cruelty towards her subjects. Then there's the famous story of the Odyssey, where she basically kidnapped Odysseus and turned his men into swine. She hated men the most, and after her banishment, she was allowed to have only women to tend to her and live with her."

"Renée is Circe?"

"Oh no, Renée is a mortal witch. Well, technically she's a witch, just a bad one. I chose her to raise you because of her supernatural instincts."

"But I've seen pictures of her being pregnant. She told me how I was born, that I was stubborn during my birth. I've seen pictures of you and her while she was pregnant."

"That's the power of magic or god powers," Charlie explained. "Renée truly believes that she carried you for nine months and that she and I produced you, but that's not right. I only came into her life after I chose her to raise you. I wanted to keep an eye on you."

"Because I'm Circe's child and Circe is insane."

Charlie started to laugh. "That's one of the reasons. I was bored, I wanted to be human for a while, that's another reason. Also, after the Olympian Gods banished most of the Titans to Tartarus in the war, they made it impossible for the rest of us to ever interact with humanity again. Those not in Tartarus were made to stay here, in this special plane created just for us. It exists alongside normal reality, but it's not. Over the many years, some have found a way to escape and bothered the humans. A handful of us are now the guardians of those produced by indiscretions. We either destroy them, or take everything that makes them a God or Goddess away from them for them to live their life as a mortal, being none the wiser after a memory wipe. The time of us playing with humanity as if they were toys is over. Done. There's no room for us in the modern day and age and that's fine. We're still here."

"Then what about me?"

"You're special, Bella. You have no need to interfere with the lives of the people on Earth and only wishes to do so on a last resort. You could have resurrected your vampire while he was still being spiteful and you didn't. You showed him that there is a light inside of him and that it was the better path. Mind you, he's still a vampire and he will still kill," Charlie replied reminded her. "However, you've shown Psyche, but also me in our interactions, that you're happy to live your own life and look at problems objectively. You like to analyze things and pull things apart to see how it works. That ability makes you the great writer that you are. Psyche also believes that you won't abuse your powers gifted by your mother and the rest of her bloodline, that it won't consume you as it would have consumed others. In other means; you are perfect, Bella."

Bella huffed. "Hardly," she replied as she allowed the information to sink in. Kol had been right, she was related to the Ancient Gods. Hell, she was related to Titans! "Wait, who's my father? Is he a mortal?"

"He was," Charlie nodded. "Circe made a deal with her cousins Dolos and Apate, both known for their trickery and deceit to get out of this place. We've since then banished Dolos and Apate to Tartarus, but Circe found her way to the realm of the humans and before we could intervene, she slept with a man. Of course, she returned with child."

"Who was he?"

"Do you really wish to know? It's not important. What is important is that you're half Goddess and half human, it makes you a demi-God."

"Dad, please."

"Zach Salvatore."

"Salvatore?"

"A distant relative of your current vampire landlords, I believe."

"Oh, fuck me," Bella muttered as she frustratingly ran a hand through her hair. "So Damon, Stefan and I are related?"

"Very distantly. Zach's ancestor was the half brother of your friends."

"Gross," Bella shuddered.

"When you wanted to emancipate from Renée and myself, I only allowed you to because Zach offered the guest house to you. Zach was a member of the town council and the supplier of vervain to them so I knew that I could trust him in keeping an eye out. He never knew who you truly were, but there's no doubt that he had his suspicions. His family has had to deal with strange things happening to them for centuries," Charlie then laughed. "But hey, don't let that little thing stop you, you're a Goddess. We don't blink if you have sex with a relative!"

"Ew! No!"

"Alright, now, should you ever decide to get pregnant, you can. Now that you've unlocked your true self, you're immortal but you haven't died and thus, everything still works. Should you bare children, they will be fully human. Again, they will grow old while you won't. I trust you in making the right decisions."

"Kol's a dead immortal, I think I'm good," Bella laughed.

"Your powers are still growing and I expect you to handle those with just as much grace and respect as you've done with them so far, but you have to make a decision based on what I've told you. We grew into a habit of destroying our indiscretions mainly because Psyche told us that they were wrong. She's a big fan of yours, as are many others of our group and you are granted a choice. Either be the demi-Goddess that you are, or be mortal without any powers. It's your choice."

"Are you going to leave now that I know who you truly are?"

"That depends on your choice, Bella," he replied kindly. "I know that I'm not your real father. I'm your grandfather. But if it were up to me, you'd choose to remain who you are."

"Life's a journey, right? What if this is my path? I mean… I was born this way, why change it?"

Charlie nodded. "Another question; would you like to stay here or return to the human realm, rejoin your vampire?"

"Life. Not here. At least not now. I want to enjoy life. Explore. Love."

"Don't tell Renée you're not her real daughter, it'll break her heart."

"I won't."

"Be careful who you tell your secrets to. Not everyone needs to know that you are who you are because despite you being one of the most powerful people walking the earth, people will try to harm you or manipulate you into working for them and making you bad things. Trust your own judgement, Bella, like you always have," Charlie then got up with a groan. "You can find me where I've always been, in Forks, but I'm keeping my eye on you like I always have. I enjoy watching you love so much, it's refreshing."

Bella got up and hugged Charlie. "You're sending me back now?"

"Not just yet," he said as he handed her a note. "Time works different here, you've been gone for two weeks, but while you were waking up, I found this note in my mailbox. Seems like your vampire has connected the dots and found us."

Surprised, Bella opened the note.

 _Get out now, while you still can._

 _Just kidding. Come out whenever you're ready and tell me I was right._

 _Kol._

She eyed Charlie curiously. "Where exactly are we?"

"We're in Forks in the house you've spent your summers in and looks like a normal house to mortals and those who are not worthy. Basically to everyone but us."

"Has there always been a beach?"

"Yep."

"And has it always been this light?"

"Of course. I'm the ruler of the sun, I love my light."

She smirked then. "Can Kol see this? It would totally blow his mind."

Charlie seemed to think about it for a moment and shook his head. "No, pumpkin, not quite yet. I'd love to meet him some day, too, but not quite yet. Vampires are an abomination."

"You're an abomination. You're the product of incest," she countered playfully and hugged him again. "If I walk out the front door, I leave this place and will be reunited with Kol?"

"He's still standing in front of the door. He must really love you."

"As he should," Bella giggled and walked back inside the house to get out of the front door. And Bella was surprised to see Kol standing there with a big bouquet of red roses. And he looked great. Sharply dressed and taken care of, not like how she had left him only a few hours prior. "Kol!"

"Happy Valentine's Day, Bella," Kol smiled widely. "I knew I'd find you here!"

"Valentine's?" Bella said surprised before remembering what Charlie had told her; time had moved differently for them. "I am so sorry."

"You're sorry? Bella, you brought me back to life. Why should you be sorry?" He softly kissed her. "I'm just glad you're back. Did you get any answers?"

"Yeah, but not here, okay? Let's go home and I will tell you everything."

"Do we really have to return to Mystic Falls? Nik told me that perhaps it was best if everyone believed I died, including our siblings."

"What about Silas?"

"Yeah well, nothing I can do to stop him now, they raised him and Katherine ran off with the cure," Kol said bitterly. "I swear, they're all like little children!"

"Uhuh," Bella said amused as she looped her arm through Kol's and started to walk down the street. "I suppose we could go somewhere else for a few weeks and celebrate your new life," she smelled the roses and sighed. "Make our Valentine's Day a week long celebration in the nicest hotel we can find… just not here. Somewhere warm. Hawaii or Australia."

"And then you will tell me?"

"Maybe."

"Oh, come on! Give me a hint, at least."

She thought for a while as they walked, breathing in the brisk air of Forks. "You really stayed out there for two weeks? In the freezing snow?"

"Well, a week and a half. I had to find your mother first and ask her where your dad lived and then I went. I caught your scent at the right house, so I stayed. Come on, tell me."

"You were partially right about something, that's your hint," she said as she hailed a taxi. "Now, please let us go? I hate this town."

~o.O.o~

Kol went overboard and booked them a hotel on Hamilton Island, Australia. It was quite a trip to get there, but once there, Bella wanted to make up for lost time, to thank him for being him and to apologize, for him having to stay outside the house in Forks for nearly two weeks.

After finding a beautiful spot on the beach a few days later, Bella sighed happily. "Yep, this is the life. Such gorgeous views." She plopped herself down in the sand and looked at Kol. "You are just bursting to find out, huh?"

"Patience is not one of my virtues, you know that."

"Well, good news is that I'm no longer a mortal. I'm immortal, just like you."

"Yay, you're more durable now," Kol smiled as he sat down next to her. "What else?"

"I think that there are nymphs in my family, but then again, so are vampires, apparently."

"What?" Kol blinked. "Did you just say vampires? That doesn't make any sense! You can't have nymphs and vampires in your family, that's just… huh?"

"Sure I can," Bella smiled at him. "Distant human relatives of mine are vampires. It's not like my blood has vampires in it or something. That would be weird."

"So you're half something…" Bella could see the cogs in his head go overdrive before it hit him. "No way, you're a demi-Goddess?"

"I owe you a huge apology, you were on the right track all along."

"You're really a demi-Goddess? I mean… deep down, I thought it was far fetched but… seriously?"

"Yep. Ancient Greek, too, so you were really on the right track there."

Kol just stared at her in awe.

"Stop it," Bella laughed and playfully pushed his face away. "Nothing's changed, we simply know what I am now."

"You're a demi-Goddess and you're hanging out with me, are you insane?"

"There's no one better than you," she said as she crawled into his lap and softly kissed him. "I love you, Kol Mikaelson, get used to having me around and doing nothing."

"I'm not worthy."

"Well, you haven't spontaneously combusted while we had sex in the past few days so… yeah, you are worthy," she grinned and brushed his hair with her fingertips. "I'm yours. I'm not going to leave you and when you leave me, then so be it, I'll have to live with that. But until then, you're stuck with me." Bella shifted a little in his lap and kissed him again. "I love you."

"I love you too, Bella Swan," he replied and kissed her before breaking off the kiss as he had a wild thought running through his mind. "Wait. If you're half human, is Swan even your last name?"

"My mother is Circe. She had sex with a mortal."

"And his name was Swan?"

"No, it's likely a name Charlie chose for himself for some reason," she said thoughtful. "It doesn't matter, I like it. It's been my name ever since I can remember so it's fine."

"So that means that you have a biological human father, right? Then there are vampires in his family."

"Yes."

"Then it's likely that I know them! Would you like to meet your distant relatives?"

"Oh, I already have," Bella said with a knowing smile on her face. "And so have you."

"But you haven't been in contact with that many vampires… Just us and… oh please tell me that you're not a Salvatore!"

"I'm Bella Swan. I'm me. Now shut up and kiss me."


	13. Chapter 13

Bella managed to distract Kol for a few more weeks until Klaus sent him a distressing message that Silas was out and about in Mystic Falls and if Kol could pretty please return to help out because Klaus wasn't sure if he could stop Silas by himself. Myriam had gone to New Orleans to make their family home in order for their return so she was no help either.

Kol had told Bella that Klaus wanted to go back to the city they helped built. New Orleans was a fascinating city with a large supernatural community, but also a sizable art community that Klaus loved so much. According to Kol, Klaus was tired of having to deal with teenagers and wanted to go back to his life.

Kol said that it was ironic that everyone was now fearing Silas, only after Kol made a lot of noise about him. "And now he wants my help?" were his exact words before begging Bella to go back to Mystic Falls for one last time so that Kol could help his brother. "What's this thing you said about choosing your own path? They didn't believe me about Silas!"

"He's your brother."

"I think the entirety of Mystic Falls should deal with the fallout of Silas, we should not interfere," Kol sneered. "If it's truly going to be the end of the world, I'd rather spend it with you before everything's over."

"Then let's not. Let's go to Klaus, say hi, stay a couple of days and leave." In all fairness, Bella wasn't afraid of Silas or what he could do; if he was something to be looked out for, Charlie - Helios - would have said something about it, wouldn't he?

It wasn't as if they had to travel for a long time to get to Mystic Falls. They were about 8 hours away from the town, as they had been visiting Atlanta, Georgia and were on their way to Salem, MA, simply because history was fun, but then again, Bella felt slightly apprehensive because of all the deaths. She had been seeing ghosts everywhere they went, some left her alone, some didn't. At least they were all kind spirits and not that aggressive, but no one knew what would happen in Salem.

She really found it to be a downside of her being what she was; the fact that she could interact with lingering ghosts and help them move on, much like a medium would do. She made sure that she wouldn't resurrect anyone but help them find peace instead. But it was a pain. Kol was sweet about it, though. He understood that she still needed to learn to control her powers, and he didn't lose his temper or patience. He merely watched in fascination.

Bella slept through most of the journey as Kol drove, but the moment they set foot in Mystic Falls, Bella jolted awake in a panic. "What the hell."

"What is it?"

"There is so much power up for grabs, I mean… like… nuclear. Almost as if a gateway is almost open to do something that's not meant for this world."

"What?" Kol laughed. "Like raising the dead? Silas is known to do that. He'll raise everyone who's died in his name, perhaps even more so. Wouldn't want to be in Mystic Falls when he does that, we have quite some enemies, Nik evenmore so."

"He'd better clean up his mess, too," she muttered as she pulled her legs underneath her and looked out of the window. "I don't see why everyone wants to steal his cure. It's his to use when the time is right, when the conditions are right. Boohoo, Elena is a vampire. Boohoo, Rebekah wants to be human again. Boohoo, Klaus wants to destroy it so nobody uses the cure against him."

"Boohoo Katherine uses it as leverage to stay alive," Kol laughed. "But that's what a powerful object does to people, Bella. I have to admit that I have done the same in the past; however, when something comes with a warning of death and destruction, you'd think they'd leave well enough alone."

"What would you do with the cure?"

"Truthfully?"

"Yep."

"Lace Niklaus' bourbon with it… so he turns human…"

"But you don't have to be afraid of him anymore, so, try again. What would you do with the cure?" Bella pointed out with a smile on her face as she saw familiar sights pass them on the way to the Mikaelson home.

"Hand it back to Silas so he can bugger off."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Kol smiled at her as he turned to get onto the driveway. "Don't get me wrong, I loved being a witch and all, but I'm pretty happy with my life right now, thanks to you!"

She smiled at that as they got out of the car. Kol often went to feed whenever she was asleep, not needing as much sleep as she needed and all, but he made sure never to make a mess and not to take things too far. She was distracted for a moment when she saw a little boy shimmer near the door of the house, dressed in ancient clothes. The boy seemed to be as shocked as she felt and winked out.

"What's wrong?" Kol asked her, he'd seen her million-miles-stare appear on occasion, it was usually when she saw a ghost or spirit that was wondering about. He had told her that while she had the power to resurrect didn't mean she had to help everyone who came knocking. Bella knew this. So far, Kol had been the only one she'd resurrected and she admitted that she was afraid of that side of her; however, she couldn't yet turn off seeing shimmering people wherever they went. New Orleans was going to be interesting.

Just as Bella opened her mouth to give an answer, a large yelp came out of the house, followed by some growling. Kol used his vampire speed to get inside and Bella followed with a slight jog.

Kol was there first, of course, but Bella was surprised to see him standing in the doorway to the room where his brother was in instead of running over to help him. "Don't bother," Kol sighed as he watched as his brother yet again tried to break his own arm to get to something invisible on his back. "I think Silas has his claws in him."

Klaus was seemingly fine, shirtless, but he seemed to be in perfect health, why was he tormenting himself and clawing at his back? "Surely we can do something."

"Or," Kol mused as he sat down against the wall. "Keep an eye on him while he keeps tormenting himself. We might learn something new."

"You are such a sadist!"

"I know," Kol replied with a grin. "Oh come on, Bella, allow me to have a little fun with my brother at least."

"Myriam," Klaus let out a cry of pain before he sunk to the floor. "Silas… he stabbed me in the back with the White Oak Stake!" he cried out. "I don't know! I wasn't in the position to ask!"

Bella huffed as she took a step towards Klaus but was pulled back by Kol. "Let me go, I hate to see him in pain."

"Oh, come on," Kol said with a giggle. "This is fun!"

"Unless it's happening to you."

"It happened to me, remember? I've been poked by the real stake!"

"Then you know we should help him," she tugged on her arm for Kol to let go of her and walked over to Klaus, grabbing him tightly by his arms. "Klaus."

"Bella… Myriam… Silas… I feel it get closer to my heart!"

It broke her heart so see the hybrid like this. Silas was likely teaching him a lesson. He was stronger than Klaus. "It's just me and Kol here. Myriam is in New Orleans, remember?"

"She came back."

"No, she didn't. Silas is in your head, Klaus, fight him."

"But Myriam…"

Bella took hold of his face then, forcing the hybrid to look at her. "Hey, snap out of it. You're hurting yourself, there's no stake, there's no Myriam," she took her phone out of her pocket and dialled Myriam's number on speaker. "Listen for yourself."

" _Hey Bella, what's up?"_

"Klaus thinks you're here."

" _I'm in New Orleans, what kind of drugs is he on?"_

"Silas," she looked at Klaus, her free hand still on him. "I think he's snapping out of it now, thanks."

" _Do I need to come back?"_

"Nah," Bella disconnected the call and looked at Klaus. "Yeah, you're back with us?"

Klaus grumbled as he looked at the mess he'd made. "We're supposed to have strong minds, especially mine. Silas is quite powerful."

"Don't make me say it, Nik," Kol rolled his eyes as he got to his feet. "Oh wait, I AM going to say it; I told you so and now you're scared and you want Silas to have the cure so he can die."

"Yes! At least that will stop him from doing this again!"

"And bring back everyone you've killed, all of your enemies and Finn in the process? Nik, please. We simply need to make him go back to sleep and make sure nobody will ever wake him again," Kol crossed his arms over his chest. "Any idea who can do that?"

"The Bennett witch is powerful enough at the moment but she's highly unstable and under Silas' thumb," Klaus replied angrily. "No, best thing to do is get the cure, give it to Silas and let him die and join his beloved, perhaps Bonnie can lower the veil between the Other Side and here long enough for this to happen and our enemies to stay dead."

"The Other Side has to be destroyed for that to happen because his beloved isn't there!" Kol shook his head and looked at Bella. "You see what I'm working with, here?"

"The question you need to ask yourself is; wouldn't you do the same if you were in his position? Tear down the Earth just so you could be with the love of your life? Raise the dead so you can find her?" Bella said with a slight shrug. "Don't get me wrong, I don't agree with what he's doing to get what he wants, but he kinda has to because the children of Mystic Falls don't want to help a guy out."

"There's no one powerful enough to help him out," Klaus growled. "Except for Bonnie."

"I'm going to seek him out. Maybe I can offer him a different solution," Bella said calmly and headed towards the door, only to be stopped by Kol. "What?"

"Are you insane?"

"I'm not a witch, I'm not a vampire, I'm not an Original. It's likely that my family are the same people he used to pray to and make offerings to. I can do things that Bonnie can't. I'm going to help this guy even though I shouldn't intervene. But dead is dead in most cases, he can't destroy the Other Side just to die and rejoin his beloved."

"Bella!"

"I'm sure there's a peaceful way of resolving this. I'll be fine, Kol. You stay here and help Klaus clean up his blood from his dealings with Silas."

"I'm not going to let you go out by yourself and meet him!"

"Then come with me but you're not saying a word," Bella gently caressed his cheek. "Fanboy all you want. In silence."

"Shouldn't you be like… not intervening?"

"I'm not. I'm going to try to help out and make sure that there aren't more casualties," Bella smiled at him. "The sooner we get this resolved, the better for everyone to move on with their lives, right? Klaus can join Myriam in New Orleans and we can continue our trip through the States." She then took a deep breath. "And I hope that the scoobies don't get into anymore trouble or at least use their heads. Hey, maybe we can do something about Elena, banish her or something so that she won't be at the centre of all this drama anymore!"

"Us immortals do have to have something to do for our entertainment," Kol huffed. "Stirring up trouble is always nice."

"You call Silas trouble? I call him something to be avoided. I'm on your side here, Kol. I'm going to seek him out and talk to him. Maybe he's reasonable. Maybe I can help," she said determined. "Now, either come with me or stay here."

She could understand Kol's reluctance of her seeking out Silas. After all, he and Klaus had more experience dealing with their enemies and such, but everything she'd heard about Silas was that he was very powerful and wanted to be reunited with the love of his life. Wouldn't anyone use their power to get what they wanted, no matter what?

Maybe there was a way that she could help Silas, if he wanted the help, and if not, she was going to think of something else to stop him from doing what he did. Likely transforming him into a statue of a pig or something. Binding him to the earth forever. She could do that now.

Leaving the house on her way to the clearing in the woods, she found the same boy standing there. "What are you doing here, little one? Don't you have a better place to be?" A child should not be alone, no matter if they were dead or alive, maybe she could help this little dude out.

"You can see me?"

"Yep," Bella said as she motioned for the boy to follow her as she continued to walk. "Come, I need to see someone."

"No," the boy replied. "I need to stay here. There's an evil in the woods and I need to make sure my family is safe."

"Your family?" Kol had told her that some ghosts could be confused, stuck in time in their death. It had sounded heartbreaking, and it was. "I think they're long gone."

"No, they're not," the boy replied angrily before winking out.

Sighing, Bella continued her way to the clearing. She was going to have to talk to Kol about this boy sooner or later. She doubted that Klaus would like to hear that his house was haunted by a little boy.

"Silas! Can I please talk to you?" She called out, willing her words to whisper through the trees until they reached their destination. Bella didn't have to wait long until Silas appeared, not even bothering hiding his true face. "Why am I not surprised?" She sighed as she got to her feet and extended her hand to him. "I'm Bella Swan."

"You're not afraid of me."

"No, I'm not," Realising that he wasn't going to shake her hand, she pulled it back and stuffed it in her pocket. "Nor do I want to harm you. I'm here to help."

"You can't help me," Silas sneered. "These brats-"

"I know that you want to be reunited with your one true love," Bella interrupted him calmly. "I'm curious, does she look like Elena?"

"She does. After Amara and I drank the elixir, Nature made sure that there were always mortal shadow selves of ours that would die."

"Katherine's a vampire. Elena's a vampire. Good job," Bella gave Silas the two thumbs up, earning a smile from him. "And you believe that Amara has truly moved on? That she's dead?"

"I was told. I saw her heart and so much blood… I just want to be reunited with her, and to do that, the Other Side needs to be destroyed. I need the cure to become mortal again and then I can die."

Bella nodded. She figured as much. "I'm more interested in making sure that my family lives in peace and that Mystic Falls is not going to be used as a battle zone. What if I could help you without the need for the cure and without the need to drop the veil to the Other Side?"

"That is impossible!"

She smiled then. "By now, you've probably figured out that I'm not mortal and I'm not supernatural. My mind is impenetrable for my own protection. I have connections you wouldn't believe. I can help you. Just leave the citizens of this Earth out of your crusade."

Silas raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "What do you want in return?"

"I want you to remove the expression magic from Bonnie Bennett. It's eating her up from the inside, but I guess you already know that and once you're mortal, before you die, I want you to erase the Expression Triangle to make sure that nobody will ever use it."

"That's it?" Silas was surprised then, and Bella felt a sense of pride that she had managed to accomplish that.

"That is it, yes."

"You really want to help me, why?"

"Why not?" Bella shrugged. "Tell you what, I'm going to ask around to see if Amara's truly dead and we'll come back here tomorrow to discuss what's going to happen next. In the meantime, you leave everyone alone."

"Or perhaps I could come with you, it would make things a lot easier."

"My family won't like that," she laughed. "After what you've put Klaus through? That was just mean."

"Oh, but it was fun!"

"Silas, please. I give you my word."

"Very well. I shall keep myself entertained until tomorrow. But, if you can't deliver, there will be consequences."

"Oh, same for you, really," Bella teased him playfully and walked away, back home. When she was sure she was out of earshot, she dialled Charlie's number. "Hey, dad," she said when he picked up.

" _I'm not your father."_

"Yes you are. Technically not, but hey, Greek and all…"

" _What can I do for you?"_

"Can you reach out to Hades or something? I'm wondering if this immortal called Amara has died like 2000 years ago."

" _Amara? I haven't heard that name in a very long time. Are you busying yourself with what's happening in Mystic Falls?"_

"To save the town. Not for any personal gain or anything, but if Silas gets his way, every supernatural creature in the world who has died in the past 2000 years will be resurrected and will walk the earth again."

" _Bella… What did I tell you about being careful?"_

"I am. Trust me, I am. Please, could you just ask around?"

Charlie let out a breath then. " _Very well. It's for the greater good, isn't it?"_

"Thank you dad."

" _Just be careful, pumpkin. Just because you're stronger than anyone on the planet doesn't mean you can't get hurt."_

"I'm careful. Always. Love you!" Bella hung up and stopped dead in her tracks in the driveway where the little boy was blocking her way to the door. "You know that I could walk right through you, right?"

"You're not nice. You'll only bring pain to my family."

Sighing, she sat down on her knees in front of him. "You know you're dead, right?"

"Of course!"

"Do you remember what happened?"

"My brother and I didn't make it to the caves when the men that had changed in wolves came out. They killed me."

"Caves?" Bella knew that there was a cave system. Kol had told her about it, that his village used it to hide in when the werewolves came out. "You died over a thousand years ago."

"So?"

"Isn't it time to move on? Your family is dead, just like you."

The boy scowled before he grabbed a stone and threw it at her, hitting her right on the arm. "Leave my family alone! You're working with the great evil and that's not nice! You'll get my family killed, or worse!"

Bella rubbed her arm, narrowing her eyes on the boy. "Listen, buddy, your family is long gone. You don't have to protect them anymore. They're not here."

"Liar!" The boy started to pelt her with pebbles and Bella quickly got to her feet and ran inside the house. As she closed the door, more pebbles could be heard hitting the door. "Fucker!"

Klaus and Kol skidded into the hallway, looking at Bella, confused. "What's going on? Was Silas unagreeable?" Klaus asked, a playful smile on his face.

"No! He was agreeable, but there's this ghostly kid who's a jerk and he's armed with fucking rocks," she said annoyed, showing the impact points on her arm. "It's like he's stuck in a loop or whatever. He knows he's been dead for like… centuries, but damn, he's a little shithead."

Kol snorted. "One of the reasons Bella doesn't want kids."

Bella narrowed her eyes on Kol. They had a conversation about children, a hypothetical one at that seeing as vampires were dead and their swimmers didn't work. Yes, there was a basic need in any being to procreate, to spawn mini me's of themselves, but she couldn't see herself having children. Ever - and she was fine with that. The world was too overpopulated anyway. "Kids are jerks. Let's adopt a dog," Bella scowled and paused for a moment before a devilish smile appeared on her face. "Oh, scratch that, we have Klaus!"

"That's not funny," the hybrid growled lowly as he made his way back to the drawing room to clean up.

"I think it is," Bella huffed as she looked at Kol. "Ghost kid. Talk."

"How about you talk first?" Kol laughed as he pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. "My beautiful Goddess getting beaten up by a Ghost boy. Cute."

She told Kol everything she'd observed about the boy as Kol lead her to the drawing room to get something to drink. Klaus had just tapped some fresh blood for them in a glass, and Kol was hungry. A shame that he couldn't sink his teeth into a ghost.

"It sounds to me like it's residual energy. The boy is fiercely protective over his long gone family," Kol said when she was done talking. "However, it's strange, because he seems to be fully aware of Silas and the fact you've gone and talked to him."

"But it's not an intelligent haunt, either. I mean, he feels real. Like when Zach appeared to me. Or Lexi."

"Were they truly haunting you, though? They were recent deaths. The way you describe the boy, sounds to me he's old. Very old. He might even be one of the first settlers here, like we used to be. It's likely he's been here a very long time."

"But why didn't I see him before?"

"Because you're still growing into your powers, darling," Kol smirked as he sipped his blood and looked over to Niklaus, who was amused. "But enough about ghosts armed with rocks, we'll figure that out. What did you learn from Silas?"

"We're going to have to wait. I have someone looking for Amara. What are we going to do now?" she grinned as she looked at Klaus and Kol who were sitting in the sitting room, sipping a glass of blood. "Play scrabble? Strip poker? Drink ourselves out of a liver?"

"Oh you do what you want, I'm going to bed after the eventful day that I've had," he said as he sipped his glass of blood. "What did you and Silas talk about? Did you find him?"

"Yeah, I've seen his true face, too."

"Shane."

"Oh, no," Bella laughed. "Oh, not at all," she laughed as she sat down on the couch. "It makes sense, really. Just think; why are there Doppelgangers? Because two idiots took an immortality potion a long long time ago and Nature needed to find a balance and created shadow selves who WOULD die in place of the originators."

"Silas is another Doppelganger? Silas is female?"

"No," Bella sang, an amused smile dancing on her face. "It's likely that Silas' beloved looks like Elena, though. I read somewhere that Doppelgangers usually are drawn to each other in every time the exist together. Katherine and Stefan… Elena and Stefan… but seeing as Stefan is actually old… maybe there's another male Doppelganger out there."

"The whelp Stefan is a Doppelganger too?!" Klaus blurted out. "Had I known this a hundred years ago I would have been free of the curse for longer!"

"Shh, he doesn't know yet. We're not going to tell them either, because as you say, immortals need entertainment," she giggled. "Besides, it's always fun to hold out on a relative, isn't it?"

"It's dangerous."

"Hey, they want to play with matches, I say let them. Silas agreed to keeping to himself until I got him an answer and the next step of doing things, but who knows? He might not. But he will leave you alone."

"I sincerely doubt that," Klaus said as he finished his glass. "Do you need me to do anything, love?"

Bella hummed as she looked over to Kol. "Maybe wear some ear plugs, Kol and I are going to throw a private party."


	14. Chapter 14

Charlie called her the next morning with the information that she had requested and she couldn't believe it. Hades had done a search for Amara, even had spoken to the other keepers of the heavens like St. Peter but no one matching her description had been found. Amara was still alive. Or perhaps dessicated, much like Silas had been.

Artemis was still looking for her, but suggested they'd try to find her themselves. The way that Charlie spoke about Hades and Artemis was as if he was talking about old friends, family, and it was still strange for Bella to hear all of that. To know that Homer wasn't just a book, that it was history.

She tried to ignore the little boy when going outside, on her way to her meeting to Silas. But she had to run away from the house as the boy was yelling at her and yet again throwing pebbles at her. She was going to kill him. She was going to raise him from the dead and kill him. Again and again - despite feeling that she couldn't do that. Couldn't. Shouldn't. Wouldn't.

Silas was in the clearing when she arrived, impatiently pacing around. "Amara isn't dead," Bella greeted him as she walked towards him. The moment she had spoken the words, it looked like a cloud lifted from his face. "They're looking for her, but maybe you have a better idea of tracking her down. Rumor has it that The Travelers have something to do with her?"

"Figures," Silas muttered before he slowly nodded. "Very well, but are you sure you can help me without the need of a cure?"

"I can try," Bella smiled. "And if I fail, I will do anything in my power to get you your cure. Even if I have to start a temporary farm to do so."

"What?"

She waved away the comment. "Never mind. In any case, go look for her. When I have any news I'll be here."

"I'm still not sure why you want to help me."

"Maybe because nobody else is willing to?" Bella reminded him. "You're a legend, you had cults. My boyfriend killed every single one of your cult members because he's terrified of you. His warnings about you fell on deaf ears and it got him killed. I understand the reputation you have, how your story instills fear in every person who's currently in your way. And if they want to have that cure so badly, you and I simply have to resort to other measures. A little kindness goes a long way, doesn't it?"

"But I don't deserve it."

"No, you're an asshole. You shouldn't have done what you did but it happened, didn't it? Nothing you can change about it now. Feelings are feelings," Bella shrugged. "I'll see you tomorrow with hopefully more news."

When she arrived back at the house, she was relieved not to find the little boy there, but the moment she walked inside, he was standing in the hallway. "For fuck's sake!"

"Bella, leave the boy alone, just ignore him," Kol laughed as he walked in, a glass with blood in his hand. "What's he going to do other than pelt you with rocks?"

"Oh, I don't know? Walk in on us when we're having sex?"

"Cool, threesome."

"He's a child! Like… 10 years old!"

"Well, that's a little disturbing. I can see your point," Kol sighed, running a hand through his hair as he looked at the empty space Bella was looking at. "Hey, uhm, kid, shoo?"

"What. An. Idiot," the boy sighed exaggeratedly. "No wonder he spends most of his time in a box!"

"Wait, what?" Bella blinked at the boy. "What did you just say?"

"You heard me!" The boy yelled at her. "Use your brains, smartass!"

"You're rude."

"You're ruder!"

Bella ducked when a few candleholders flew at her and was relieved when Kol actually caught them before they hit her. "Hey now!" Kol scolded. "She does not deserve to get hurt, she's trying to help you here."

"Niklaus needs to box him again," the boy scowled as he looked at the door as it opened, revealing Klaus holding a bunch of flowers, looking surprised at the scene before him.

"What's this?" Klaus laughed, seeing his brother hold a few candle holders. "Wait, if this is some kinky play, then I'm out."

"Bite me, Nik," Kol growled. "What are those flowers for?"

"For my new sister, of course," Klaus smiled as he handed Bella the bunch of flowers and a peck on the cheek. "I need to stay on her good side, don't I? Don't want her to turn me into a dog again!"

Bella blinked as she looked at Klaus and then the flowers. "Uh…" She looked at the boy, who now stared at her with big eyes and then back at Kol and Klaus, seeing the familiarity on the faces. "Uh… guh…"

"Don't tell me Kol broke you with the candle holders when he suggested kinky sex."

"Uh…" Bella shook her head as the cogs in her head finally started to clear the dust bunnies in her mind before pointing the flowers at the empty space between the brothers. "Uh."

"It's the ghost," Kol shrugged. "I'm certain she's appreciative of the flowers, Niklaus, but why are you giving my girlfriend flowers? You're not afraid of anything."

"She can turn me into a dog," Klaus pointed at Bella. "Fix her, she needs to thank me."

"Do they know you're going to get them hurt?" the boy smirked and threw a few books at her, which Kol expertly caught too.

"What the…" Klaus jumped to the side, avoiding the books flung at Bella. "Bloody hell, ghost person! Can't you and Bella talk this out peacefully?"

"Peacefully?" Kol snorted. "You sound like Elijah, brother."

"Well, we could sure use his diplomacy skills if she has an angry ghost kid following her around!"

"Uh…"

"What's his name anyway?"

"I don't think she's ever asked, Nik."

Bella took a deep breath and shook her head. "I don't need to, Kol. I know who he is now. We've been so busy with Silas that… Oh, I'm so stupid."

Two men and a ghost looked at her in anticipation. "Well?" Klaus prompted her.

"Ohh… you're not going to believe me if I told you…"

"Do we know him?"

"Yep."

"Okay, then probably not. Who is he?"

She looked at Klaus and debated whether or not she'd tell him, knowing how torn up he was going to be if she did, knowing how guilty he still felt. "Henrik."

"Bloody hell," Klaus muttered under his breath.

"I need a drink," Kol sighed, shaking his head. Like the rest of the family, he'd been worried that eventful night when Nik and Henrik had snuck out to be watching the wolves. Kol had been wanting to go out in the village and look for his brothers, but Mikael wouldn't have it, he wouldn't mind losing two children as if he'd lost his entire family things would be worse.

Klaus nodded, as Bella's voice echoed in his his head. "Make that a double for me," he said, following his brother out.

"You're a floozy," Henrik said, pointing at Bella. "You're a floozy and you're going to get them killed."

Bella's jaw dropped to the floor. "How am I a floozy!"

"Nik got you pretty flowers and you're sleeping with my other brother. You're not even married. And you are going to get them killed, mark my words!"

"I'm not going to get them killed!" She cried out, throwing her hand in the air and following Klaus and Kol. "You two have your glasses? Give me the bottle!"

~o.O.o~

A couple of days later, Amara was found. It had been hard to find her because she'd been turned to stone and in the custody of The Travelers, who moved her every few days. Silas was beyond ecstatic when he saw her, stone or not. "Bella, this is amazing!"

"Klaus and Kol retrieved her from a shipyard in New Jersey. I'm afraid that some of your Traveler witches didn't quite make it."

"She'll be safe here," Klaus said from a distance. "We'll keep her safe inside this house until you come up with a solution to what she is."

"What do you mean?" Silas said confused. "She's stone, all she needs is some blood and-"

"Qetsiyah turned her into the anchor to the Other Side," Bella explained. "As Kol explained it to me, if we free Amara from her stone prison, she'll still be anchored to The Other Side. Should I want to free you and Amara from your suffering, I will have to find a replacement for Amara or allow The Other Side to disappear completely. It's likely that everyone currently in The Other Side will be sucked into oblivion."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I want it to be your choice. Qetsiyah is waiting for you on The Other Side. Either you can have her wait for eternity or have her poof out of existence for good. Either to move on and find peace, or go to their kind of hell," she explained to him. "If it were up to these two clowns here, the Other Side would be destroyed, making sure that their parents and their brother will never be able to return by any means." She then chuckled. "Hell, because I'm interfering, they might even have to go past Hades first. Poor guy will be so overwhelmed."

Silas thought for a moment. "I want the Other Side to stay up for a while longer, as a punishment to Qetsiyah for separating Amara and I. I'd have to have a suitable replacement for the Anchor."

"Great. Now allow me to make you mortal again and you can cleanse Bonnie while I'll go find Amara's replacement."

"Did you have someone in mind, darling?" Kol asked her curiously.

Bella hummed a response before nodding. "The Scoobies are going to revolt, but she'll still be alive and well and living so they shouldn't complain… unless we turn her into stone. Now, that would be fun. Elena Gilbert, the statue!"

"You will do no such thing!" Klaus blurted in surprise, and perhaps shock. "If you do that, how on Earth will I create more hybrids? I already killed them all for treason. I want her back to being a human!"

Bella huffed. "I thought you gave up on all of that crap? Besides, imagine the gang all running around, not knowing what to do and scratching their heads… Maybe by doing so I can convince at least one Salvatore to just give up on her and move on. Perhaps join you in New Orleans. Damon _loves_ New Orleans."

"I can't have another homicidal maniac running around the city."

"What? Kol's a changed man!" Bella laughed. "Besides, like it or not, Damon and Stefan are family."

"Bella, I've entertained your crazy idea for too long, this simply can't happen," Klaus said angrily. "Perhaps it's highly moral of me and as much as I'd like to see everyone in town scratch their heads and all, this is madness. Elena Gilbert is off limits."

She looked at Silas and shrugged. "Fine. I guess all you need now is the cure, right, Silas? You're going to take the cure, get Amara back, get rid of The Other Side and resurrect a lot of supernatural people. It's likely that half of them are enemies of Klaus, but why not? It's not like all of that can be avoided by one teensy transferring spell, can't it?"

"Perhaps you should choose a different person, maybe that would please him," Silas suggested, sensing the unease Klaus had with Bella's choice.

"Fine. Katherine will do. Where is that bitch?"

"The bitch is here, what do you want?" Katherine's voice sounded and Bella looked over her shoulder to see Elijah, Rebekah and Katherine walk into the room. "What's Stefan doing here with that creepy statue of Elena? Did you make it, Klaus?"

"Katherine will do, indeed," Klaus sneered.

"Don't think for a moment that I'm enjoying my time here, Klaus, I have better things to do. I'm only here because of Elijah," Katherine crossed her arms over her chest and nodded towards him. "He has the cure."

"Oh, good, then he can give it to Silas, that way I won't have to pull a rabbit out of my ass," Bella smiled sweetly as she looked at Elijah. "Be a dear and hand it over?" Bella held out her hand for the cure.

"Well, actually, my sister wants to become a human again," Elijah said amused as he nodded towards Rebekah. "I figured I'd give her the opportunity to show me that she can live a full day without any vampiric interference."

"Hand me the cure, Elijah, don't make me ask you again because I will turn you into that stag again and I will ransac your pockets. Who knows what I'll find?"

"No!" Rebekah objected, clearly hurt. "You promised, Elijah, I would get my chance."

Elijah sighed as he didn't take his eyes off of Bella. He knew that he couldn't refuse her because she'd do exactly as she said. Besides, Rebekah would be incapable of living as a human for a day, she loved being a vampire too much. "My dearest Rebekah, I never believed you could live as a human for one day, I merely wanted to entertain myself," he said as he handed the cure to Bella.

"You wanker!" Rebekah cried out as she stabbed him in the back with a silver dagger laced with white oak. When Elijah's dessicated body hit the floor, she kicked him for good measure before composing herself and looked at her brothers and their guest. "He deserves a timeout." When Katherine made a move to remove that dagger, Rebekah stepped in front of her, vamp face out. "Don't even think about it. If I can't get what I want, neither will you."

Klaus merely smiled widely as he watched Silas eagerly knock back the cure. Klaus had taught his sister well, although a dagger to the back was quite disrespectful - on top of that, Elijah didn't like to sleep on his stomach. Did he really have to undagger him only to dagger his brother properly? No. He did not. Elijah had this coming. Much to his own dismay, Rebekah felt remorse, of course she did, and removed the dagger from their brother.

It didn't take long for Elijah to come back to his senses and to his feet, angrily looking at his sister. "Do not do that again."

"Bite me, brother."

Silas pulled Katherine towards him with his magic and grinned, loving the fact that the cure had actually worked, before breaking the vase next to him and cutting his own hand, holding it up against Amara's stone mouth. She was going to have the cure inside of her immediately once she would find the strength to drink and he had to work fast. He used a simple transfer spell to make Katherine the new anchor, it wasn't that hard seeing as she was Amara's doppelganger, and released Katherine the moment it had been done.

Amara fell into his arms with a sigh of relief, clinging onto him for dear life. "Silas," she breathed.

"Hello, my love," he tenderly said as he pushed her hair out of her face.

"What the hell just happened?" Katherine demanded as she looked at Amara in shock, before looking at Bella. "The fuck just happened?"

"You're the one holding the Other Side together now," Silas quietly replied, lost in Amara's eyes. "Every supernatural being that dies will pass through you to get there."

"Well that's bullshit. Fix me," she then turned to Elijah, anger written all over her face. "Did you know about this? First we can't use the cure on your brother or your sister, and now you're allowing this to happen?"

Elijah thought for a moment, knowing that the whole situation was out of his hands, especially when it came to Bella; there was no use to fight her. Despite Bella having fun with her powers didn't mean that she could use them for destruction. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he was afraid of her, but he knew he wasn't the only one. Perhaps the only one who wasn't afraid of her was his brother Kol; but that was only because of his relationship with her. "Think of it this way, Katerina," he eventually said quietly. "You'll be safe from Niklaus for the rest of your days; he wouldn't want our mother and father escape the other side."

Katherine let out a cry of frustration before stomping off, finding some place in the house to cool off and plot her revenge. She was going to kill Bella. Oh, she so totally was.

"I think we should give the lovebirds some space, 2000 years apart is a very long time," Bella said as she looked at Silas and Amara, both were lovingly staring each other in the eyes and it made her throw up a little in her mouth. Not because it was so over the top, but mainly because it were the original Stefan and Elena and that was just a trainwreck.

"No," Silas said, breaking eye contact with Amara and looking straight at her. "Amara and I wish to die and spend the rest of eternity together. You said you could help us without taking down the Other Side."

"Yes, please," Amara begged. "Haven't Silas and I not suffered enough?"

"I'm going to vomit," Kol muttered, uneasily shifting on his feet, much like Klaus was.

"I know, I said I could help and I can," Bella slowly nodded, knowing full well that she couldn't grant them their wish of dying. Of moving on. She could, but she didn't want to kill two perfectly healthy people. No matter how much of a headache Silas had been for her family. "And I will, but at least spend a few hours together like this. Talk to each other. Enjoy each other's company for awhile. I'm sure there's a room in this house Klaus could sacrifice for a night. We'll talk more tomorrow."

"You'd better not be pulling a fast one, Bella Swan," Silas' voice was dripping with venom as he lifted the lithe Amara into his arms. "Because immortal or not, I could make your life-"

"I suggest not to threaten me, thanks," Bella countered. "I have been nothing but kind to you and your plight. I am the reason you two are currently reunited. Find a room, enjoy each other. We'll talk tomorrow."

They watched the two walk off and Bella was just about to get herself a drink when Henrik shimmered into the room. "Oh no, come on, leave me alone for just one day."

"They're in this house. They will kill my family," Henrik said, arms crossed over his chest. "They need to leave."

"They won't do anything, I promise."

"I don't like you."

"Who is she talking to?" Rebekah questioned Kol and Nik, who both rolled their eyes and walked to the nearest table to pour themselves a drink. "Nik!"

"Long story," Klaus replied as he knocked back a glass of bourbon. "You don't want to hear it."

"They should, though," Kol said with a shrug.

Bella narrowed her eyes on the boy, who was now holding a heavy marble bust Klaus had placed in the room. "Don't you dare."

"Get the evil out of this house and leave."

"Why won't you leave!" Bella erupted as she tried to grab the bust. "Give that to me."

Elijah watched as Bella was fighting an invisible force who was holding a bust. Niklaus and Kol were bored, almost as if they'd seen this happen before. "I think that an explanation is in order, Niklaus."

Kol turned around in time to see Bella fly across the room followed by the bust. She hit the small chest of drawers full on and ducked to avoid the bust hitting her head. Bella growled as she got to her feet, not showing that she was hurt, but she seriously had enough. "Henrik Mikaelson, you are going too far. I'm not hurting your family, but you are hurting _me_. Enough is enough. They're more than capable of taking care of themselves and don't need you to protect them. Please see that and move on because you do not wish to see me angry."

"Henrik?" Elijah and Rebekah's heads snapped to the action. "Henrik's here?" Elijah said confused. "And he's hurting Bella? He was always such a well behaved boy."

"Well, we're not the same as we were when he died, either," Klaus said with a shrug. "For some reason he doesn't trust Bella and he doesn't trust us to protect ourselves. This has been going on for days now."

"Maybe I can reason with him."

"Doubtful," Klaus snorted.

"Our darling brother has been hanging around for quite some time. Ghosts and spirits feed off of the energy of the people they're surrounded with; with us, he has a feast due to our immortality and the magic running through our veins. Not to mention Bella's energy. He's never moved on after his death and wants to look out for us - sort of like a caretaker. He wants to protect us and sees Bella as the enemy," Kol explained to his siblings. "Then on the other hand, there's the throwing of things and his bursts of anger; typical poltergeist stuff. Henrik is lucky that Bella's patient and that we're all immortal."

"So what's it going to be, little boy? You want nice Bella, or severely annoyed Bella?" Bella said, still advancing the boy, yet slightly wobbly on her feet. Patient, my ass, she thought.

"You can't hurt me!"

"No, but you're afraid I'll get your family hurt or killed and believe me, if I had wanted to do that, I would have done that already," she tried to hold back her anger. "So, how about you shove off for a bit, think about your options and when you're nice and want to move on, I'll help you talk to your family before you do, how's that?"

Henrik stuck his tongue out to her before he fizzled out.

How was she going to help this little boy move on when he didn't want to do so voluntarily? The more she interacted with him, the more she felt that she wasn't powerful enough to grab him and force him to move on; allowing this growing ball of rage to live on as it had was going to be dangerous. She could definitely feel that. Resurrecting him was also not an option because of this.

She had Klaus and Kol on her side already, both saying that Rebekah and Elijah were going to have a harder time with accepting the fact that the boy needed to go.

This was going to be fun.


	15. Chapter 15

"I don't see why we can't kill them right now. He's a witch, she's a human, easy to kill," Klaus muttered during breakfast the next morning. "He's been stirring up trouble and-"

"Who said anything about killing?" Bella replied as she buttered her piece of toast. "I promised them that they could spend their after life together and not separated by the Other Side." Oh, she had thought really hard about this, merely because she had made that promise without actually having a plan. It was Kol who reminded her that she had the best way to fulfill that promise and at the same time to get revenge for what Silas had done to her family. To Kol. To Klaus. "Speaking of the Other Side, anyone heard Katherine last night?"

Elijah let out a deep breath as he put his napkin down on his plate. "Turning her into the anchor to the Other Side was a little harsh, wasn't it? After all she's been through due to our family?"

"Is that guilt, brother?" Klaus said amused. "I, for one, believe it was a great decision. It's Katherine. You can get a lot better than Katherine as your lover."

"It's not-" Elijah scowled before rising to his feet and got ready to give a speech. "Granted, she can't be trusted after she deceived us for so long, but we all got second chances. Third chances. Katerina is turning over a new leaf and she's shown that by making sure we had the cure. In exchange for her freedom. In exchange for-"

"Oh, get off it, Elijah," Rebekah rolled her eyes at him. "Katherine is a conniving little bitch, just like all the other doppelgangers and she's been playing you both for years. Do you honestly believe her so called feelings for you are real? She's the female version of Niklaus, she even said so herself. They manipulate, they punish, they control. They share the same thirst of power and you know why? Because they feel alone."

"Niklaus has changed since Myriam came into his life. Kol has changed since he met Bella, why can't Katerina have changed?"

"Because for God's sake, Elijah, Katherine gets off on fucking with your head. Honestly, if she'd been so afraid of Niklaus during the time she was running from him, she'd have killed herself. But she didn't. And you know why? She wants to live. Katherine doesn't want to die so instead she's doing everything in her power to make sure that she stays alive. If that means hanging out with your self-righteous ass, then so be it!" She fumed as she, too, got to her feet. "Besides, Nik and Kol only changed because they fear their girlfriends while you merely want to fix your broken little toy."

"Niklaus has hidden Myriam from us for a long time and he didn't change one bit."

"This is not about me," Klaus finally interrupted. "We need to take a step back and consider our actions should Bella not have intervened. While I am all for murder and mayhem, Silas is a bloody thorn in our side. Granted, we could leave and have the Salvatores take care of this problem, but I believe they're not entirely capable of greatness. Unlike us, Bella wants to resolve things peacefully, and this is her way of doing it."

"Well, I prefer not to kill anyone and to give people what they want," Bella shrugged. "In a manner of speaking. I mean, I haven't even discovered half of what I can do and it's scary."

"Yep, with great power comes great responsibility," Kol said as he popped a strawberry into his mouth and leaned back into his chair.

"Says the homicidal maniac," Rebekah rolled her eyes at her brother.

Kol coughed. "Excuse you, sister. It's _reformed_ homicidal maniac!"

"Well that remains to be seen," Rebekah huffed as she nodded towards the doors. "Ah, the lovebirds have arrived! Breakfast?"

Silas leveled his gaze upon the vampires and Bella. "We've agreed to your stalling techniques, Miss Swan, we'd like you to stop it now and relieve us from our burden. End our lives and make good on your promise."

Bella scowled as she took a sip of her coffee. "Who did you worship in your time? Hecate? Circe?"

"I did," Silas nodded. "Both. And the sun god Helios, we all worshipped him."

She sighed as she shook her head and rose to her feet. "Must be fated then that I'm the one helping you two get what you deserve. I can't kill you guys because Silas would still end up on the Other Side. However, I can relieve you from your burdens and grant you peace. A transformation."

Right after Bella finished speaking, she flew across the room, hitting a wall as she kept dangling her feet. "Silas!"

Klaus was quick to rush over to Amara and putting his hand around her little neck and Kol was smacked against another wall when he wanted to stop Silas. "Kill my love, Klaus Mikaelson, and I'll kill your little friend."

"She's immortal, mate," he spat at the warlock. "Unlike your girl."

"I said I would help, not how," Bella struggled to breathe. She inwardly cursed when she saw Henrik flicker into the dining room and see everything that was going on. He started to yell at Klaus to let Bella fight her own battles because she was the reason evil was inside these walls, yada yada yada. "Let go of me, I'll help you right now."

"You lie!"

Bella took a deep breath and tried to push Silas' force away from her so she could focus. Immortal or not, she still needed to breathe and he was powerful. Bella knew that she was more powerful than him, but she didn't want to test her own strength, not indoors. She always feared she'd break something when trying to do something. Even when she used her powers to nudge people against walls. They were nudges, not full blasts. Bella eventually managed to breathe normally again and even though she was still up against the wall, she was ending it now. All of it, and she wasn't even going to explain it to Silas and Amara.

Focusing on the two, she started to visualize them as swans and made the thought grow inside her mind. Bigger. Urgent. Willing and forcing the original faces of Elena and Stefan to turn. Bella dropped to the floor the moment Silas changed into a majestic black swan and she was relieved that by forcing him to become something else, his magic was taken away as well.

"Someone open a door or something," she muttered as she looked at Henrik, who was looking at her with a shocked expression on his face. "What?" Bella sneered at the boy while she allowed herself to be put back on her feet by Kol and didn't look away from the boy ghost.

"A thank you would be nice," Kol huffed.

"Yes, thank you, Kol," she quickly said, validating her words by rubbing his arm as she held on to him. "Who wants to talk to Henrik? This little buddy needs to move on."

"I don't want to! I want to return! Like you did for Kol!"

"He wants to return and join you guys, apparently."

"We already discussed this," Klaus muttered after he had ushered the swans out of the window. "Too much has happened in the last thousand years since he was alive and while he's still my brother, I don't wish to be responsible for him."

"I know," Bella replied as she sat down in Kol's lap, still a bit dazed of the smack against the wall. "But we haven't given Rebekah and Elijah the chance to talk to him yet."

Elijah sucked in a breath, not sure if he was ready to stumble into something new so fast. It remained to be amazing to see Bella wield her powers and for a short moment he had feared for all of their lives when Silas seemed to snap. "I'm certain that between all of us we could take care of our baby brother if he wishes to return?"

Klaus rolled his eyes. "Do you honestly wish for him to return? Elijah, we're monsters. Deadly beasts with emotions as fragile as a hair. If we lose ourselves for only a second, we could kill him and I'm certainly not willing to turn him at this age." Granted, he, Kol and Bella had discussed this already; allowing their siblings to come to the same conclusions as they had, but he already knew it was going to be impossible for Bella to resurrect Henrik. According to her, he felt different.

"Nik, he's our brother," Rebekah replied. "Doesn't he deserve another chance, like Kol has had?"

"And it's your fault he's dead in the first place, Niklaus!" Elijah countered passionately. "You always drone on about family first. Family. You've kept us in boxes, so afraid you'd lose us and you don't wish for Henrik to return? We have the opportunity to reunite with our youngest sibling! We should take advantage of that!"

Bella could feel Kol tense up underneath her and looked at him, gently caressing his cheek with her hand. "Shh," she whispered and softly kissed his cheek. "Let the big boys fight this out, you can beat up Elijah later."

"You are correct, brother mine," Klaus said, once again getting up from his chair, rising and making himself appear taller than Elijah and his sister; a tactic that had always worked so well. "It is my fault that Henrik's dead and I shall have to live with that guilt for as long as I shall live, like I have done up until this day. Bella allowed me to speak to him, and I profusely apologized to the boy, asking for his forgiveness, which I thankfully received so that makes my guilt a bit less heavy," he continued as he advanced at his siblings, anger bubbling underneath his skin. "Do you believe he'd flourish in this modern day and age? After all that we've been through, all the enemies we've gathered? They could use him against us, Elijah."

"We can protect him."

Klaus let out a snort. "You two were so against me taking in Marcel, raising him as one of our own, teaching him all that I could…" He then pointed at Elijah. "Until you started to mess with his education it all went well! But that was Marcel. Family, sure, but not by blood. Henrik will be a completely different story and I am sorry, Elijah, but I can't have you screw him over as well."

"Niklaus, I believe we both have a vastly different memory of that time."

"Oh please, your constant bickering and fighting didn't do Marcel any good, you both twisted his mind and manipulated him. In fact you and Nik were constantly at odds with each other that Nik undaggered Kol out of spite to raise some hell and rebel against you, Elijah. But it took a whole tenement building and a bloody Hamlet for the both of you to decide to box him in favor of Marcel!" Rebekah shot at Elijah, but also directing it towards Niklaus.

"Kol, say something," Elijah urged him.

"Why should I, brother?" Kol said, still his hands tightly fisted in Bella's lap. "All I can see is history repeating itself. I'm with Nik on this. There is no place for another sibling in our midst."

"Why are you so mean!" Henrik screeched. "It's your fault! It's your bloody fault!" He directed that at Bella before flinging something heavy at her.

Kol caught the vase with ease and set it down in front of Bella. "He's a menace. The two of you will fawn over him and make him even worse, turn him into a spoilt brat while me and Nik will be on the sidelines watching because you two don't trust us enough to do good. Not that I'm planning to stick around, anyway, I promised Bella to show her the world, but you'll be left with Nik and even though Myriam is more than capable of making sure he doesn't do anything rash, you just know that history will repeat itself. Henrik needs a mother. A father. Not his deranged siblings."

"Speaking of which," Klaus punched Elijah, hard. "Just because we have someone in our family that can do the most wondrous of things, doesn't mean we will use her. That we'll force her to use her gifts for us and if she's not cooperating that we'll torture obedience from her. Bella's a lovely girl who's been nothing but kind and a good influence on our previously untamable brother. We shall not use her as an opportunity. As an object. As one of our array of powerful beings," he spat. "She makes the decisions, not Kol. Not I, and certainly not you. We should feel honored that she's giving us the chance to discuss Henrik's possible resurrection amongst ourselves, but I have a feeling that she's already made up her mind."

Kol visibly relaxed as he let out a breath. Bella was smiling proudly at the hybrid before she beamed up at Kol. "Told you."

Kol returned the smile she gave him. "What's your verdict on our baby brother then?"

"I know how much you all want to see him again, no matter what has been said just now. But unlike with Kol, I don't sense anything about him that could make me bring him back. There's nothing there but an intelligent, angry young boy who thinks nothing has changed. That it will be alright once he's back, but it won't be. When I spoke to Kol when he was a ghost, I could feel his potential and which is why I had him peel back layer upon layer of his emotions, his feelings, to show him that. I can't do that with the boy. Nor do I want to. You all have a wonderful life at this point; there's nothing threatening your way of life and you can finally enjoy it again now that Silas has been taken care of. Now that the Other Side is still intact. Why bring in a complication?"

"He's our brother, Bella," Rebekah growled.

"I know he is, but I just told you that I can't. Even if I wanted to, I can't. I can't even forcibly move him on and will have to ask for reinforcements."

"Do you have to do that?" Rebekah asked, her demeanor suddenly small, scared, sad. "I mean, what's the harm in him lingering around here? He's been here for a thousand years and now he finally has someone he can talk to and-"

"Sister," Kol said calmly. "Henrik has been a spirit for so long, he's died, he's gone. He's bound to the Earth because he failed to move on by himself. I believe he only got back to life, sort to speak, because we are all here. Because we're back where we left him. He feeds off of our energy to be here, to interact, to throw things at Bella because he doesn't like her. He's afraid, he worries about us and wants to protect us."

"And what's wrong with that, Kol?" Rebekah shot at him. "What's so wrong about having a spirited family member?"

"Because we are created by magic, and leaving him exposed long enough, Henrik could turn into a bloody menace and terrorize everything and everyone. Had we been anything other than vampires or immortal, Henrik would have made us feel drained and exhausted due to his energy sucking to remain here. Should he stay here, we'll eventually move on, he'll be unable to communicate with us and he'll flicker out again until we come back. It's much better for him to leave this place and go elsewhere where he can be taken care of properly. He doesn't mean well, despite what he's saying, despite of who he was. Now, I've seen Bella help out a lost spirit or two on our travels and they weren't quite the hassle as Henrik is. As much as I like the idea of Henrik always being here for us, it's wrong and potentially catastrophic." Why did it feel like he was repeating himself over and over like a broken record?

"Who cares? We're immortals," Rebekah sighed. "Come on, don't be such a party pooper, Kol."

"Rebekah…"

"No, it's alright," Bella said as she shrugged. "For what it's worth, it's best to remove him from the limbo that he is in now, he's alone. Should he move on, he could reunite with long lost relatives, like an aunt or uncle or grandparents, who knows? Not me, but hey, at least it's worth a shot. If the majority of you wants him to continue to be alone, then so be it."

"But like you said, he's looking out for us!"

"Rebekah, you're vampires. You don't need to be looked after," Bella said with a slight chuckle. "Besides, Henrik might think he's doing the right thing, but he's not. He can become stronger and stronger and then decide to experiment on taking over people; possess them and hurt them. Get those people killed or do harm himself while in said body. It's fine!"

"They don't want me to leave!" Henrik laughed as he danced around the room. "So that's you leaving?"

Both Elijah and Klaus had gone quiet during this discussion with Rebekah, and Bella knew that Klaus was on her side. They had already discussed this. The possibilities. The only solution was for Henrik to be removed and forced to move on. "Look, I understand you want your baby brother back, but it's simply not possible. It's not good for him to stick around, either. You shouldn't feel guilty for the life you have now or that he got killed. It's all part of life and in the past, life was harder. His time was a long time ago," she then huffed. "You're freaking vampires, you deal with death of loved ones a lot. Get over it." When both Elijah and Rebekah opened their mouths, Bella turned them into a stag and a common barn owl. "They can hate me all they want later."

"I do believe that Elijah was on our side, Bella," Klaus mused as he quickly closed the window he had previously pushed the swans out of so that his sister couldn't escape. "You didn't have to give them a time out."

Bella ducked when Henrik threw a rather large buste of some sort of important person at her. "You're a meanie!" Henrik cried out as the object shattered into a thousand pieces on the floor.

"I'm going to call my da- grandfather to see what to do now, if I even can get help," Bella grumbled as she left the room to make her call.

" _Hey Bells, how are you doing?"_

"Great! No accidents so far!" Bella grinned. "How are you, dad?"

" _We've been over this, Bella, I am not your father."_

"Force of habit."

Charlie huffed in the other end of the call. " _Hades told me you've recently sent some souls his way. I think it's great that your big heart also reaches to the ghosts."_

"Kol told me that it's what some witches - mediums - do, and I feel for them, there aren't a lot of people who they can fully interact with. Which brings me to a problem I think I need Hades for… Do you think you could ask him to come down for me?"

" _Of course I can! He's been waiting for this opportunity, very curious to meet you,"_ Charlie replied cheerfully. " _You're not in trouble, are you?"_

Bella let out a snort. "Nothing I can't handle apart from this… extremely annoying little kid who I can't help, but I have a feeling Hades might."

" _Very well. Word of warning; he is a bit of a flirt."_

Bella let out a snort. "I'm sure I can handle it." She then remembered something and felt stupid for asking, but better safe than sorry, right? "Since he's like… a God and all, does he require an offering of some sort?"

A warm, loud laughter could be heard coming out of Charlie's mouth. " _Sweetheart, I am a God, do I require an offering?"_

"No, but that's because you raised me and shit."

" _He's our cousin, he doesn't get shit."_

"If you're sure."

" _If anything, he should give you an offering because he's an Olympian and you're more of a Titan than he is, but that's a story for later. I'll send him your way."_


	16. Chapter 16

When Bella hung up on her - Charlie, and walked back inside the room, she found herself being amused by Rebekah the owl, flying circles over the heads of her brothers, occasionally pecking at their skulls while she happily hooted away. "Someone's enjoying herself," Bella mused as she leaned against the doorpost. "Maybe we should keep her like this indefinitely."

"She'll hurt herself or worse," Klaus said, his face saying he was pissed off but his voice had a hint of amusement in it. While he had gotten used to Bella turning people into temporary animals, it was still astonishing and scary that she could. "Is he still here?"

Bella looked around and found Henrik near the bookcase. "Yep, he's at the bookcase if you wish to talk to him. I'm going to the kitchen and make myself a sandwich." Before she left the room, she turned Elijah and Rebekah back into their normal selves so the siblings could continue to squabble while she was out the room.

Bella was slightly fed up with Henrik. With having to deal with Silas. With everything, really. She wanted to leave and spend more time with Kol. They had so much fun before they had to return to Mystic Falls and frankly, as strange as it may sound, the time with Kol had made her feel normal after the discovery of who, what, she was.

She was getting too involved in things that she should have stayed out of, again. But it was because of the people she'd chosen to surround herself with that she chose to help out. If she hadn't, Silas would have done a significant amount of damage to not just Klaus, but also to the Salvatores - and it was still odd to call them relatives. Damon was still Damon and Stefan was still a jerk.

There were times that she hated everything she had learned in the past and wished that everything returned to normal; but she was well aware that if things hadn't changed, she'd never have met Kol and wow, was that a deal breaker! She loved writing about bad boys, dangerous boys, who had a heart of gold when it came to those they loved, always doing right by them and whatnot, and never in a million years she believed they were actually real. That she'd manage to fall in love with one and him falling in love with her.

She hopped on the counter as she munched on her sandwich and thought about what she and Kol were going to do next; likely Disney or to Los Angeles and soak up the sun. Or maybe, finally introduce him to her parents. Formally. Like… "This is my boyfriend," or something like that. Charlie knew, but still.

"So, Nik wants us to go to New Orleans with him," Kol said as he walked into the kitchen, an excited puppy look on his face. "It's been so long since I've been there and I'm pretty sure you're going to like it as well. The witch community is extensive there and they always liked me."

Kol had told her about how his family shaped New Orleans, helped building it from the ground up and that they had spend hundreds of years doing so. She was well aware of how much the family liked the city, but she only saw one problem with it. "Haven't we been avoiding cemeteries?"

"You'll be fine," Kol laughed as he put his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. "Granted, they have more cemeteries than any other city we've visited, but-"

"How many?"

"I don't know. 15?"

"You're wrong," Bella snorted as she took another bite of her sandwich, motioning for Kol to keep thinking.

He looked at her, not sure what she wanted of him as their eyes met. "Sixteen and I'm not wrong about that!"

A cheeky smile appeared on her face as she swallowed her bite. "You're still wrong," she sang softly as she wrapped her legs around his waist to keep him in place. "Have you forgotten the bloody history of New Orleans? Like… how many dead people aren't buried in the cemeteries? The wars that have been fought, the serial killers, the duels, the people that have been left for dead in the swamps, the people killed due to natural disasters and never found, the -"

Kol shut her up with a kiss. "It will be alright, darling," he assured her. "We've been to many cities where there are more bodies buried than New Orleans and you were alright there. You're panicking over nothing. New Orleans will be a blast."

"Kol, New Orleans is one big cemetery."

He reassuringly smiled at her as he ran a hand through her hair. "You have nothing to worry about, trust me. If anything, the ancestors might be a little bit pissy for bringing someone who's more powerful than they are into the city but that'll all work out in the end, I promise."

"But what if?"

"Well, if you do get into trouble, then that's a pity. We'll return to New Orleans once you've got that part of your gifts under control," he said while he started to bounce on the balls of his feet. "But please, let's not not go just because you're afraid."

Bella huffed as she ruffled his hair. "I'm not afraid. I'm _worried_ that I might do irreparable damage or that I'll be taken away and not allowed to return to you."

"I won't ever let that happen, I know where your grandfather lives and I'll huff and puff against that door until he lets me in and get you back." He kissed her again until a loud knock could be heard coming from the front door. "I think our guest has arrived."

Bella sighed and nodded, but didn't make any attempt of moving. Instead, she finished eating her sandwich while she heard Klaus walk to the door to open it. She hadn't met Hades yet. From what she had learned from Greek Mythology was that Hades was one of the few who battled with the Titan Gods to end their rule, and when the kingdom was freed, he and his other two brothers divided their rule. He drew the short stick and became ruler of the underworld. She feared that Hades might not like her for that reason; she was the daughter of Circe, after all. And yet, Helios had managed to get Hades to the surface to help her out which made her believe he wasn't that bad.

Kol unwrapped her legs from around him and pulled her off the counter as soon as she finished chewing the last bit of her sandwich. "Come on, chicken," he said playfully. "It's for you."

Bella was surprised at the sight before her when they entered the hallway; she had imagined Hades to be an older man, much like Helios, but Hades looked like a young man in his late twenties. Dark and unruly hair, quite a lot of it too, dark eyes and a handsome face. If she hadn't known any better, she'd have thought he was one of those emo punk kids terribly into bands such as Green Day. "Hi."

"Helios wasn't kidding when you said you were gorgeous," Hades smiled at her. "I believe he was quite mild about that description, if I have to be honest!"

"Taken, sorry," Bella muttered. "Nice to meet you, Hades."

"Nice to finally meet you too," he replied, a warm smile dancing on his lips as he walked towards her with an extended hand for her to shake. "I don't get out of the Underworld much, but I'm hearing nothing but good things about you. Now, what did you need me for?"

"Is seeing and interacting with dead people normal for people like me?" It was out before she knew it. She didn't mind her other powers, but this one was a big hurdle for her. "Or you know, helping them find peace and leave mortal world?"

"With a lineage like yourself, one of the cleanest of the bunch, I'd say, yes. It's normal, but nothing you can't handle, right? Otherwise Helios would have eased it a little bit for you?"

"It's annoying," Bella replied with half a shrug. "Sometimes Kol and I get wrapped up in… private things, and then we get interrupted. Or rather, I get interrupted."

"Well, at least you've got it more under control now, you don't send entire cemeteries to me anymore."

"I didn't!"

"You did," Hades laughed. "And that's okay. The Mystic Falls cemetery didn't hold that many wayward spirits so I could deal with them on my own and didn't have to awaken my staff." He put an arm around her and walked with her to the sitting area, completely ignoring the vampires around him. "You see, the Underworld used to be such a busy place, with me having a lot of people to help me out when Charon brought the dead to me. Lots of different areas to store souls as well. The Elysian Fields or places for punishment… Heaven or Hell, is what you know it as now, I believe, but there were at least seven places to direct souls to. It was quite the work! Whenever you send someone to me, I either keep them and store them away, or, when they're religious, I send them to the heaven of their choice. My life hasn't been this exciting for centuries!"

"But I don't-"

"Yes, you do like that warm and fuzzy feeling that you get when you've helped a spirit cross over. It's a sense of pride and ability, there's nothing wrong with that," he zeroed in on Henrik and let out a breath. "Oh, I see. You need my help with that one, right?"

Bella nodded and looked over her shoulder to see Kol and Klaus behind them, warily looking at Hades, who still had his arm around Bella, before she clocked Elijah and Rebekah, sitting in the chairs near the fire. "Henrik is their baby brother, he died over a thousand years ago and all he wants to do is protect his family of vampires. There's no off switch on him and he doesn't want to leave on his own."

"Yeah, I see the problem," Hades said as he looked around, finally acknowledging the vampires. "They hold too much guilt for him to move on, to be loosened from this Earth for you to 'turn that off switch' for him. I sense that they do know it's best for all and him if he gets what he deserves, but they still feel that guilt and the little one is feeding off from that. He's stuck in his beliefs that he does need to protect his siblings from outside forces like yourself and nothing can shake him out of it. It's a good thing you've asked Helios for my help, if you'd have left this boy to roam for longer, he could have gotten so bad to the point where he could take out this entire village. You could imagine him becoming a supernova and blow up; taking everything with him."

"How's that possible?"

"It's not the boy's fault, not at all, it's your vampire friends. Their magic. Their guilt. Their emotional ties to this boy. It's the price you pay for immortality and emotional instability; vampires aren't known for their emotional stability."

Bella held up a hand when someone wanted to protest out of principle. She was well aware of the emotional fluency of vampires, and Hades was merely stating facts. It didn't surprise her that they made it hard for Henrik to be free. She was surprised by how quiet the boy was, though. Normally he'd have thrown a fit or whatever, but he just stood there. Doing nothing but looking at them. "But what of their enemies though?"

"No emotional bond, it's different," Hades said as he grabbed the boy with his free hand. "I'll be taking him back with me and give him the proper care that he needs." Hades then let out a snort. "Hel and I are due for a cup of tea."

"Hell?"

"No, Hel. As in the Norse Goddess Hel. She has a realm called Niflheim where those go who did not die a heroic death or haven't made any difference in their lives. Don't worry, it's not fire and brimstone or torture. I'm sure that she'll appreciate you returning this young viking boy."

"We weren't really practitioners once we arrived in the New World," Elijah finally spoke. "I doubt that Goddess Hel would want our brother."

"He's viking adjacent, much like yourselves. Hel will love the company," Hades countered before looking at Bella. "You behave yourself, young lady. Although I have a feeling that I will see you around quite soon."

"What?" Bella stammered, but Hades merely winked at her before transforming into yellow energy and swooping himself and Henrik out of the house.

"Is that it, then?" Rebekah said in barely a whisper. "He's gone?"

Letting out a breath, Bella nodded.

"Well then," Klaus smiled widely. "Nothing for us here anymore, let's prepare ourselves for our journey to New Orleans."

Bella walked over to Kol and let his arms pull her in. "Can we go home for the night?"

"We are home."

"No, my home," she said as she looked up at him. "At the boarding house. Just you and me."

"Bella, the bed here is far more superior."

"Then I'll go by myself."

Kol realized that Bella wanted to leave, she felt crowded or overwhelmed and her little house on the Salvatore property was her way of leaving it all behind, where she felt more comfortable as she's spent so many years there by herself. "Okay, we'll go."

"Great! I'll go pack our bags," she said as she ran up the stairs, leaving the siblings once again, alone to squabble, as she realized that Elijah wasn't far off of having steam coming out of his ears.

"She," Elijah pointed out the door. "Had no right!"

"Wow," Kol said stunned. "You meet an actual Olympic God and the only thing you can say is that she had no right?"

"Haven't you been listening, Elijah?" Rebekah asked from her position in her chair. "Henrik could have ended up destroying Mystic Falls."

"Oh, that's complete and utter nonsense, Rebekah, and you know it. Henrik was a gentle soul and now he's been taken to Hell where he'll burn for all eternity."

"Correction," Klaus piped up. "Hades is taking our brother to the Norse Goddess Hel to be looked after; he didn't say anything about actual hell. Correct me if I'm wrong, brother, but whereas Valhalla is the place where slain, distinguished warriors go, Folkvangar is where the regular warriors go and Niflheim or Helheim is where those go who have not been notable in life or death. The Norse didn't believe in actual Hell, that's a Christian invention and they borrowed the name from the Norse Goddess. I'm fairly certain that Henrik will be alright and in a better place."

"Yes, now, stop being such a prick, Elijah," Rebekah said, finally getting up from her chair and walking over to the nearest alcohol bottle. "Henrik would have destroyed your precious Mystic Falls eventually. Now, onto different matters, Nik. Are you really going to make me go back to New Orleans?"

"If it helps, I hear that Myriam has already taken care of your worries, dear sister," he replied kindly. "While I wasn't a fan of the idea, Marcel has been taken out of the equation. He's not dead, merely… incapacitated."

"I'm still not going back."

"You, Bella and Myriam could start something of your own, outside of family business. A pet rescue center, perhaps?" Klaus said amused. "Or a perhaps a brothel?"

"With you as the main attraction, sister," Kol laughed.

"To be fair," Bella's voice sounded from behind them. "I think that Myriam would totally rock being a madam of a brothel. Maybe we could do both! A brothel and next to it a pet rescue center!"

"You lot have the worst ideas," Rebekah said as she knocked back her drink. "I will think about it!"

~o.O.o~

Bella liked being in her old home for a little bit. Stefan and Damon weren't home so they weren't going to bother her and Kol and after the last couple of days of having had to deal with Henrik and Silas, she welcomed the peace and quiet. Not that she and Kol got that much sleep that night. They quietly talked between make out sessions and the occasional sex to release the stress from both their bodies.

Kol told her all about New Orleans and the witches there. How they performed Ancestral Magic and how different it was from what Bonnie practised. How the Ancestors still wanted sacrifices in order to give their witches more power. He told her about the werewolves and the vampires in New Orleans as well, that, during the time that the Mikaelsons were there, that there was peace between the three supernatural species and how the humans were kept out of the loop. How humans were the most important thing for the city to thrive. And thrive it did.

Kol was all giddy to embrace New Orleans as his home again and not just because of the witches or atmosphere; it was a city that never slept, much like New York, but so much more exciting. Bella loved it that he was so passionate about a city, but it didn't make her worry disappear all together. She wanted to be with him in New Orleans, but if it would prove to be difficult, she'd have to settle to stay somewhere where there were less bodies in the ground, much like the places they had been visiting on their travels.

However, she could be wrong about New Orleans as she'd been wrong about Salem as well. She and Kol visited Salem for the sake of history and it had been pretty quiet for such an infamous place and, for most of the journey to New Orleans, she held on to the fact that she could be wrong.

They were traveling in two separate cars; Elijah, Klaus and Rebekah in one car, and Kol and Bella in the other, as they had less space in the car. Despite everything, every vampire was opposed to getting a mini van to transport them all together. Kol was fine without the sleep, but Bella couldn't help but to fall asleep for a couple of hours before she told Kol that she wanted to drive for a little while so that he could relax, much like how they'd do on their own road trips.

Kol took over again when they stopped in Birmingham, Alabama for some food and petrol. Bella had bags underneath her eyes and he was going to force her to take a proper nap on the backseat, he wanted her to experience New Orleans to the fullest once they'd get there. First impression was always the best.

He woke her up from what seemed to be a nightmare in Slidell, just outside New Orleans. All they needed to do was to drive a little bit further over the I-10, cross the bridge and they'd be home. Maybe it was better if she was awake for this. Bella would love the view over the water.

Bella grumpily chatted with what seemed to be a ghost, helping that person out, while they were having a coffee to wake her properly, but it didn't end there. At some point it appeared that she was talking to at least ten of them before she got fed up, pulled Kol up and dragged him off to the car and told him to drive. Visiting Slidell was not in the cards any longer.

"Look at that view!" Kol said impressed as they were on the bridge into New Orleans. "Isn't it astonishing?" He looked over to her, but she had her eyes firmly shut and her ears covered with her hands. "Bella?" He gently touched her shoulder but the reaction that she gave him wasn't expected.

"Don't touch me!" She cried out, wincing as she hugged her knees to her chest and started rocking back and forth. "Shut up… shut up… leave me alone…"

Kol slammed on the breaks and quickly turned the car around before putting his foot down so he could get off the bridge as fast as he could. He nearly lost control over the car when Bella cried out in pain, loudly, with an ear piercing cry before he could feel an energy emit from her followed by a yellow light taking her once again, away from him.

"Fuck!"


	17. Chapter 17

"What happened?" When he saw his brother drive erratically and turning around as if something was wrong, they turned around as well and followed him, but when that yellow light came that Klaus had seen only twice before, he realized his question had already been answered. "They took her?"

Kol slammed the roof of the car out of frustration, creating a huge dent in it. "I should have listened to her, I should have. She didn't think going to New Orleans was a good idea and I should have listened instead of insisting and telling her it was going to be alright and-" He ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath to calm himself. He was getting hungry and despite the cars driving around them, he could easily stop one and pull out a human for a snack. "I'm going to Forks."

"Last time it took two weeks, Kol."

"I know, Nik, but I'm still going. As I told Bella, should anything like _this_ happen again, I was going to get her back and I'll wait for as long as I need to. They're likely telling her that she should not do something like this again and give her back."

Klaus let out a snort and shook his head. "You're in deep, brother. Good luck then, but don't feel offended when we're going to make a wager between us on how long your patience will last."

~o.O.o~

Bella gasped for air as if her life depended on it. She had felt as if she'd been drowning, suffocated, and it had hurt, but everything was quiet now, she could take a breather. Once her head didn't feel like it needed to explode or as if it was on fire, she took a dare to look around.

She wasn't in Charlie's home in Forks. She was somewhere else. Bella found herself staring at Hades, who had a stern look on his face and it just didn't match the personality she had encountered two days ago.

"You know, I know I said we were going to meet again soon, but this soon?" Hades said in a disapproving tone, crossing his arms over his chest, staring her down. "Do you have any idea what you did? After I told you that it's just me up here, that I have my minions in eternal slumber? It's just me here and you just gave me a shit ton of work!"

She blinked at him then, not knowing what he was talking about.

"Look, the first time you sent a couple of souls my way, I let it slide. You didn't know what you were doing, but you should know better now," Hades was still sounding disapproving. "And these aren't just a couple of souls, either! It's years and years of battles, natural disasters and murder victims thrown into the water. This is New Orleans we're talking about!"

Once she was certain the God had ended his speech, she spoke up. "What happened?"

"What happened?" Hades huffed as he pulled her to her feet and directed her towards a large window looking out over some courtyard, revealing a lot of people wearing clothes from different times. There must have been a thousand or more down there."You can help ghosts to move on and usually, you're doing a pretty good job by reassuring them, one on one, having them know that they're going to be displaced for something better." He gestured to the people below them. "Now, you tell me what happened."

Bella could feel the color drain from her face. "I told Kol that I didn't want to go to New Orleans, but he assured me- It started in the city ahead of New Orleans, Slidell, there were about twenty of them and rising once the word got out that I could see them and I told Kol to drive… hoping I'd leave them behind… Before I knew it we were on the bridge and Kol telling me to look at the pretty view and…"

"You were overwhelmed. Absolutely no control whatsoever. Well done. Now there are about a three thousand people ready to be directed to their form of afterlife and you're going to help me sort them," Hades replied and started to direct her towards the door. "I was told you had your powers under control, Bella. I guess I shouldn't have trusted that lying bastard on his word. Tell me, did Helios train you, at least? Guide you? Tell you what you're capable of?"

"N-no," Bella stammered. "But he did say that if I ever needed help-"

"Typical," Hades scowled. "You see, that's one of the reasons why we dethroned the Titan Gods all these millennia ago. Fucking everything with a hole, no control whatsoever and just mainly fucking about. And don't even get me started on your mother, she-"

"Your own father ate you because he knew you were going to overthrow him. It was only that Zeus-"

Hades scrunched up his nose. "Quite the trauma, being regurgitated. I can still smell the bile we were covered in. I was the oldest and therefor also the last being thrown up. All the pee and poop of my siblings-"

"EW! I so did not want to hear that!" Bella said appalled.

"We only let Helios out because Circe had managed to escape and impregnate herself with that Salvatore loser. We allowed him to stick around because for all intents and purposes, he was your father, after all. We tasked him with looking out for you and look! You fucked up!"

"You don't sound like a God, Hades."

"I may not get out much, but I do roll with the times, young Padawan," He lead her down a staircase and towards a row of clothing booths. That was the best way Bella could describe them, all with a different sign above the door. "These are portals to everyone's beliefs, their heavens, sort to speak. Or their hell, depending on what judgement they receive on the other end. Those with no preference stay with us."

"Okay?"

"Get crackin', Bella, because I'm going to go and have a little _chat_ with your grandfather about you and by the time I get back, I want you to have sorted at least 500 of these lost souls. You freed them from their Earthly bonds, it's your responsibility to deal with them."

Bella swallowed hard. "But, what do I do?"

Hades shrugged. "I don't know, you figure it out, you're the smart one! You've got everything under control!" And with that, he disappeared, leaving Bella with all the people that she had moved and hadn't even been aware of.

A desk appeared so she could stand behind that as some sort of barrier between her and _them_ , but she felt like such a loser right now. A child who's done something wrong and had been placed on the naughty step. But this wasn't even her fault. It was Kol's fault; he insisted in going to New Orleans and-

Taking a breath, she stopped herself right there and then. Kol wasn't to blame for all of this; she could have told him 'no' and she could have gone somewhere else. Without him. But without him things were boring. And they were together. Then again; Kol should have listened to her, too. She needed to get to work; the longer she was away from Earth, the more time passed and Kol could do something incredibly stupid.

It was strange how the afterlife worked; all of a sudden she could speak all these kinds of languages and understand them and make herself understood. Most of the people she spoke to were good Catholics. There were a handful of Vodou practitioners and one of the newer souls, a tourist visiting New Orleans when Katrina hit, was Hindu, but she wasn't struggling with the workload just yet. By number 300 she was getting thirsty though. It was no wonder that Hades had a whole staff of people working for him in the times where the Greek Gods were still 'a thing', they deserved their eternal rest, Bella couldn't imagine having to do this day in and day out.

There were a few tough ones in her first 500 souls; small children made her so sad. Who would want to kill them? Some of them died of accidental drowning, but another part were street urchins who died of the cold. Or were abandoned by their families.

Hades returned when she was working on 499. "How many did you do?" He demanded, relaxing his stance but crossing his arms over his chest and angrily looking at her.

Bella watched as 499, Sarah-Jo Watson, walked passed her and into the Christian booth. "Next one is 500."

"Too slow," Hades said as he snapped his fingers. "Two hundred more before I allow you a small break."

Bella fought the urge to talk back at him. This was her mess, this was what she was supposed to clean up and she wasn't going to complain about it. And yes, it was likely that the quicker she worked, the sooner it would all be over and she could return to Kol. "How much time has passed on Earth?"

"I don't know, do I look like a timepiece?" Hades nonchalantly shrugged.

"You're a dick."

"I don't like people," Hades pointed out. "The sooner you're gone, the sooner I can get back to keeping to myself…" A smirk then appeared on his lips. "Hmm… I have a great idea that I could do once you're gone and it involves your mother and the Chair of Forgetfulness. Oh… haven't used that one in a very long time…"

Bella was about to open her mouth when Hades spoke again.

"Who knows, I might allow you to play fetch with Cerberus for a couple of minutes once you've done the 200 extra. He deserves some fun," Hades shrugged. "Although he's not as big as you think he might be."

The thought of playing fetch with probably the most famous dog in all of mythology sounded absolutely fascinating. However, once she reached her extra 200, she opted to simply to keep on going, not to waste any time in fixing her mistake. Hades sometimes helped, but by the time she had gone through all of the souls, she was tired. Exhausted. She felt relieved, but she had the feeling that she could sleep for days.

Bella had attempted to try and make sense of the days in an attempt to figure out how long Kol was by himself with his siblings, but she had given up around the 1500th soul. She was unable to tell, why try to figure out a way anyway? She merely hoped that Kol wouldn't be daggered again because he pissed off the wrong sibling.

And as much as she wanted to sleep for days, she knew that Hades wasn't done with her yet and thus, wasn't allowed to go. "Alright, I'm done, now what?" She sighed as she sat down against a pillar and looked at the God. "Any more penance I need to do? I've learned my lesson."

"Have you?" Hades countered as he squatted down in front of her. "Because frankly, my dear, I think that you're in need of some control over this side of you."

"I don't even want it," she muttered. "I mean, yeah, I brought Kol back to life and I've done some good with it, but it's too distracting, too… much. I'm not made for this shit."

He smiled at her then as he reached out to ruffle her hair. "That's what you get for being raised a mortal and only grown into your powers when you turned 18. You have the mortal way of thinking and that's alright. I can help you with this. I can't exactly take it all away as it's a part of you now, but I could get into your mind and dial this gift way back. Maybe to only being able to see the spirits of loved ones? To help those you love, incase one of your vampires gets staked before their time?"

"Is that even possible?"

Hades nodded. "Helios should have seen this coming a mile away. But I heard he only gave you two choices, huh? You like your vampires too much to leave the Earth and join him and his family and your abilities are so much fun, he should have offered to tone them down until you were full and ready, not to merely take them away." He rubbed his hands together in glee. "Who knows? I might unlock some more abilities inside of you that are fun! Your mother loved transforming people into animals and that certainly has rubbed off on you, but that's not all she could do, can do. Let's find out!"

Before she could object, Hades had slipped inside her mind and she could _feel_ him moving around, tugging on things inside of her, loosening other things, and she started to feel back to normal again. Herself. Not this person with a huge weight upon her shoulders. All the while, Hades was grinning like a lunatic. Bella wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

She wasn't even sure if she should allow him to mess around in her head, seeing as he was practically at odds with the Titan side of the family. With reason, too. While she was righting her wrong, Hades told her more about the Battle of the Gods, _Titanomachy_ , and the reasons behind it all. Compared to the Titans, the Olympians were innocents; well, apart from Zeus. He liked to sleep around with anything and anyone. There were stories Hades could tell her about his brother that weren't ever documented by scribes because they were so scandalous.

The Olympian Gods were far from innocent, of course, Bella knew that. But they were quite tame in comparison.

Instead of letting her go once he had messed with her abilities, Hades took the time to teach Bella how to control them; it took quite some time, regrettably, but it was necessary for Bella not to feel like a loose canon. She had believed she had been in control whenever she transformed people into animals, but as it turned out, it was so easy to tip the balance and make unwanted transformations; transformations that could actually kill her subjects when she didn't want them to die.

One of her new abilities was to turn invisible. Not to really turn invisible, but unnoticable; something in the corner of someone's eye, not being able to focus on and therefor not to be seen. Something that all Gods could do. To be somewhere but not, and nobody could tell, not even witches and not even the Ancestors.

Bella had told Hades about her plans of going back to New Orleans now that she wouldn't be able to get overwhelmed by the dead anymore, now that she couldn't see them anymore. She wanted to go back to her boyfriend. Hades told her that the Ancestors wouldn't like her presence in the city because she had the power to destroy them; something Hades really didn't want to dial down inside of her because she might need that power one day. The Ancestors didn't like it when someone was more powerful than they were, and he warned her that life would be hard for her in the city. However, turning invisible to everyone, would certainly work in her favor when it came to the Ancestors.

According to Hades, the Ancestors were nothing but power hungry dead witches who required sacrifices each year. They didn't require it, but they did it as to 'give back' to those who sacrificed to them. There was this spell called The Harvest that required the practitioners of Ancestral Magic to sacrifice four of their young women every 300 years or so, to the Ancestors, to ensure that the witches could still channel their Ancestors.

Hades thought that was bizarre. Even at the height of the reign of the Old Gods he had hated the sacrifices and offerings made to him, or for him. It was unnecessary, and quite frankly, he had found them offensive. Just because he didn't like to show his face and his business was the Underworld didn't mean that he wanted black sheep sacrificed to him. Or blood spilled in his name. People had the power inside themselves to deal with things, they didn't need his aid at all.

Bella got slightly pissed off when Hades told her that almost two years had passed on Earth during the time she was with him, but accepted it because it had been her punishment, and in return, Hades had helped her _a lot_. "Now, before I pop you in New Orleans," Hades said with a playful smile as a bouquet of cornucopias appeared in his hands, "You have to know that I don't do party favours, but I really liked your company, Bella. I love your work ethic and you're an excellent student. Should you and Kol ever wish to have children, let me know and I'll make sure his swimmers can swim again."

He handed her the bouquet of flowers and before she could say anything, she found herself in the middle of a square near the waterfront of New Orleans, holding the flowers. Freaked out, she left the flowers at the statue of Andrew Jackson and decided to get her bearings. She had absolutely no idea where she was, where the Mikaelsons were and in how much trouble she was with them.

It wasn't as if she could ask anyone where the famous Originals were living these days because that would draw too much attention. Bella was glad that Hades had returned her bag to her as well; her money and her phone were still safely inside of it so she rented a hotel room and decided to sleep for days first. No matter how badly she wanted to return to Kol, she needed to be awake and not walk around like a zombie. No, her head needed to be firmly placed on her shoulders and not still in the clouds. Or underneath the dirt or wherever Hades' underworld was located.

It took her a few days to familiarize herself with the French Quarter and it was only dumb luck that when she rounded a corner that she saw her Kol with a young brunette, holding hands, talking softly to each other with that goofy smile of his that Bella had only seen him using on her before and Bella's heart broke.

However, she wasn't going to let this one go, Kol was hers. Not this floozy's. Taking a deep breath, Bella started walking. There was no way that she was going to let Kol out of her sight. She hoped to catch up with him and then walk off with him, leaving the young girl behind. Kol looked good, his ass filled those jeans very well and that jacket… she wanted to rip it all off and reclaim him as hers. Again and again if she had to.

"Hey!" Bella said once she had caught up with them. "Are you done playing? Can we go now?"

Kol turned around in shock. "B-Bella? You're back?"

"Oh, this is the bitch that left you?" the brunette huffed, looping her arm through Kol's, staking her own claim on him. "She doesn't look like much."

"I had to clean up my own mess, Kol. What made you think I wouldn't return?" Bella smiled at him, ignoring the midget next to him. "But I guess trading me in for a younger model answers that question for me. Tell me, did you even wait for me to come back?"

"A month!"

"Wow, a whole month! I thought I was worth it to wait at least… two months?"

"Nik needed me and-"

"It's okay," Bella said, still not moving from her spot, now addressing the person next to him. "It's okay, you can let go of him now. He's going to take me home." She couldn't believe how bitchy jealousy made her feel.

The girl opened his mouth but Kol spoke before her. "Bella, your home is wherever it is. Forks, or wherever. It's not with me. You left me and I'm with Davina now. Deal with it. Go home. Leave me and the rest of my family alone, which should be easy because you're so good at it," his words dripped with venom and Bella was slightly taken aback by his words. She couldn't help but watch him and Davina walk off and by the time she had recovered, she knew that running after him wouldn't be a good idea.

While his rejection had hurt, she could feel the tears burn behind her eyes, something felt off, and she was going to do everything in her power to make sure her family was alright. And to start with that, she had to disappear and regroup. Observe. Learn things. Find out where everyone was and do some more observing.

This sucked.


	18. Chapter 18

"Bit silly of you calling a family meeting when you, the one who called for it, shows up late!" Klaus scolded his youngest brother as he walked into the courtyard.

"Oh, step off, Niklaus, it's not as if you have anything of importance to do," Kol shot back at him. "And to those who do, Rebekah, Myriam, I am sorry I'm late but I had to be sure I wasn't followed."

Myriam let out a snort as she settled in Klaus' lap. If anything, she didn't quite mind leaving her place of employment for a little while; the smell of sex and the energies in her brothel usually made her horny as fuck, and she was going to drag Klaus off to his bedroom as soon as this meeting was over.

Kol had sounded worried and scared when he called her and she was glad that there was at least one thing Klaus had taken from the whole Silas situation a few years back and that was to listen to his siblings, especially Kol, when something was going on. Kol didn't scare easily, so whatever it was, it was going to be good.

It wasn't connected to the current werewolf problem the Mikaelsons had been dealing with for the past couple of months, otherwise it could have waited until there was more news. The whole thing was interesting as hell.

"Proceed, Kol," Elijah encouraged him from his spot near the bar.

"I never thought the day would come where I'd say this, but for once it's not one of your deranged exes that have come to town," Kol pointed at both his brothers. "Davina and I were minding our own business today when Bella showed up thinking I'd take her back."

"Bella's back?" Klaus wasn't surprised by this. Before she disappeared they had been a family, he had considered Bella to be family, but as time progressed and she didn't return like the first time she'd disappeared like that, he knew that she had abandoned them.

At first, he had feared that his brother Kol would turn to his old ways, but soon after Klaus had recalled him to New Orleans to deal with the witches, Kol found his new girlfriend, Davina, who seemed to be more sane than Bella. Also, she was a witch and easier to kill should she betray them like Bella had. A witch who had her powers under control.

Klaus liked it that he was back to being the one to fear.

Granted, Bella was entirely different from them. She played by different rules, and time progressed differently for her when she wasn't on Earth and she couldn't be blamed for having been gone for so long. But she did abandon them; she could have fought harder with Kol for not going to New Orleans because she didn't have the control she needed.

And who was to say she had control now?

Elijah tiredly pinched the bridge of his nose. "We can't deal with her now, we have a lot on our plate already with the Guerrera's."

"I know that, and I told Bella to leave. To leave us alone. I know that she probably won't do that as she's so obsessed with us, so me and Davina are going to work on a few spells that will hopefully be able to contain Bella for a long time. Or at least to slow her down so that we can think of a permanent way of dealing with her."

"That's a bit overkill, isn't it?" Klaus spoke up, not entirely surprised by Kol's eagerness to make sure that Bella wouldn't do anything to them, but it did sound a bit too harsh. "Has she ever done anything to purposely harm us?"

"Given time, it's likely she would have or will," Elijah replied. "We've been over this, Niklaus. She's an immortal demigod, she has powers we haven't even begun to understand and she doesn't either. Sentiments aside, she has the power to cause major destruction and we'll be unable to stop her. Demigods aren't known for their benevolence, either."

"Hercules."

"Oh, please," Elijah rolled his eyes at his brother. "In comparison to him, then yes, Bella's a saint. But Gods can't be trusted. I've read everything we have on Gods and ordered first editions of other books that I've read too, and Bella does not fit in with the characteristics. She's an unknown."

"And she hurt us all by leaving," Rebekah replied, getting up from her chair and let out a breath. "Very well, I will have my guard up. Thank you for informing us, Kol, but I have to get back to the animal shelter."

"Davina and I will handle this when she comes back again, I promise," Kol said sincerely. "I will not allow her to mess with our family again."

~o.O.o~

A good thing about being invisible was that she could move around without being noticed and encounter people doing embarrassing things. Bella felt like a private detective as she roamed the streets of New Orleans with her notebook. She followed the hushed whispers of the witches as they spoke amongst themselves about a family of drug trafficking werewolves who had been at odds with the Mikaelsons for quite some time now and they were now going to end it for once and forall.

Bella was shocked to find out that they had managed to get Klaus' blood and fabricate rings that would allow the wolves to control their transformations during the full moon; much like how some vampires were able to walk in the daylight without burning. It angered her, as one of the wolves she'd followed was happily chatting on the phone telling the other person that through this, they had weakened the big bad hybrid.

She had followed Elijah to City Hall where she watched him bribe - no, compel - a city worker to do something and Bella realized that the Mikaelsons were readying themselves for war with the wolves by making sure the Guerrera's didn't have any place to hide.

She needed to work fast. It was likely that they weren't going to fight in broad daylight and seeing as night was about to fall, Bella had to go before blood was spilled. It was easy enough to get inside the house, all she needed to do was to slip in when the door opened and everyone was conveniently gathered in the same room as they discussed their battle with the Mikaelsons. Bella could tell the rings were spelled with Klaus' blood. For some reason, she could feel it deep inside of her.

Bella smacked everyone against the wall; some went through a wall, but that was alright, she had hit them hard enough to knock them out, for now. She ripped the rings off the fingers of the wolves and put them into a nice velvet bag that she had acquired in a gift shop before taking one of the smaller guys and extended her invisibility to him after turning him into a harmless little puppy that she could carry with her.

Despite her being immortal and part God, her strength, her physical strength, was that of an ordinary human. Bella figured Klaus wanted to spill blood for what these wolves had done to him, so she was going to leave him a little present. If he and his siblings wanted to kill the wolves she'd knocked out, then that would be their decision, their choice. Not hers.

Clutching the still unconscious puppy underneath her arm, Bella decided to make a run for the bus. The full moon was already out and she wanted Klaus to be at full strength and happy when he'd join Elijah, Kol and Myriam in their fight against the wolves. Then again, it was also very likely that Klaus would stay at home and use her offering's blood as paint. With Klaus, things could go either way.

She also wasn't sure if the mere act of taking the rings off of the werewolves would have restored Klaus' strength or that if they needed to be destroyed. It was best to remain hidden for now, Kol had been angry with her as it was, and she was certain that Klaus would know this gift came from her, right?

Half an hour later, she slipped inside the building and carefully made her way through it, trying to find where Klaus might be hiding out. Bella merely hoped that Kol had gone with Elijah and not stayed behind to look after his brother, because that would certainly be awkward. She froze in her steps when she heard scuffling behind her, steps, and when she turned around, she saw that it were the rest of the wolves.

Not knowing if Klaus had protection or not, she smacked the wolves against the brick walls of the building, and the handful that a hard head, she smacked them twice. Knocking them unconcious. There were more on top, but they were being held back by an invisible force. Kol's harlot was the source of that.

Scowling, Bella managed to find Klaus in his study, quietly painting and seemingly no longer under the influence of people wearing his blood in enchanted stones. Jerk. Had she been that worried about him over nothing?

Bella made the little velvet bag holding the rings visible and threw it at him.

Klaus turned around and caught the little bag, a smirk on his face as he peeked into it. "I thought you were told to leave," he said playfully, looking around in the hope to see her, but she wasn't there, or was she? "Learned a new trick, I see?"

She kept quiet as she turned the puppy visible and released it on the floor now that it was conscious. Bella then turned it back into a normal person and she saw the smile on Klaus' face grow wider.

"Oh, you shouldn't have! I want to bet that his color will be the right color that I'm missing in this painting!" Klaus launched a brush at the werewolf's neck and penetrated it, causing the werewolf to fall down instantly. "Wonderful!"

Bella didn't understand why Klaus was being _nice_. Was Kol the only one of the family who wanted her gone? Or maybe, whatever the reason was for Kol not liking her hadn't rubbed off on Klaus.

"Hurry along now, CeilingCat," Klaus quietly sang as he focused on his painting, using the blood of the slain werewolf. "This will be our secret, for now. But do know that we don't need your protection."

She did as she was told and while dodging more werewolves, and, Davina, she managed to get out of the building undetected. She hopped on a train car and rode it for awhile, until she was certain she was as far away from the French Quarter as possible before getting off and made herself visible in an alley. She needed to eat, and think about what Klaus had said.

Scratch that, her next order of business would be to delve into Davina's life. She had already sussed out where most of the Mikaelsons lived, worked and hung out, and now it was time to focus on the bitch who stole Kol from her. It was likely that she had to do something with Kol's attitude towards her.

Or maybe this was the case with vampires in general. She wasn't sure. Picking at her food, she decided to call the best vampire she knew outside the Mikaelsons.

" _Damon's phone."_

Bella blinked at the sound of the voice she heard. Really not the person she expected. "Stefan?"

" _Bella? Where have you been?"_

"Fixing my mistakes, why do you have Damon's phone?"

" _No, seriously, we've tried calling you, where have you been?"_

"Stefan!" She had a bad feeling about this. "Did something happen to Damon?"

" _Not just Damon. I mean, they have to leave Katherine alone because she's the Anchor to the other side, but we're all at risk of getting caught. Especially me, however, for some strange reason they're leaving me alone, too."_

"I'm coming to Mystic Falls," she said as she shoved her plate out in front of her. The Mikaelsons could wait, Damon was more important.

" _No, don't. Whatever you're going to say, or whatever you want to do, you have to let us handle this. It's still my job to make sure you're safe and as of right now, I really can't guarantee your safety in Mystic Falls. There's this coven of witches called the Gemini and they've mostly died out, but a handful still remain. According to Alaric, they're known for creating prison worlds where they put the most dangerous of creatures and we suspect that they put Damon in one. They're like the witchy police. Bonnie's working on finding a way of getting him out."_

"I'm coming."

" _Listen to me, Bella, we've got this. I promise you that I'll have Damon call you when he's back."_

Bella scowled then, taking a sip of her drink. "I'm not fragile, you know. I could kick ass."

" _I know, but should they find out about you, who knows what would happen? Now, what did you need Damon for?"_

"I don't know," she sighed, pulling the plate back towards her to finish her food. "I mean, I know Kol's reputation and how he used to be, but are vampires really that fickle? He saw me disappear before his own eyes once before, I can't help it that it took me nearly two years to get back! And Klaus, he's acting somewhat normal, but is this kind of behaviour normal? I mean, didn't I mean anything to Kol?"

Stefan sucked in a breath. " _I can't say for sure, I'm not him, but he's Kol Mikaelson, anything is possible. It's very easy for a vampire to fall back into old habits. Maybe that's what he's done without you."_

"But he changed, Stefan. He was sweet and kind and all… manly," Bella's cheeks flushed by the sheer memory of him naked in front of her. "I thought what he and I had was something worth waiting for. If not, at least knowing what I am, understanding why it took me so long to get back."

" _What about the others? Have you spoken to them?"_

"No… but I might have eavesdropped on Rebekah and Myriam when they happened to cross my path…" Bella sighed again. "Is it possible that I believed that there was a real connection going on when there really wasn't?"

" _Oh yeah, especially considering you involved yourself with a Mikaelson."_ Stefan sounded way too happy about that and she imagined her next fry to be him and bit his head off. " _On the other hand, you involved yourself with a Mikaelson and they tend to have powerful enemies. You're going to have to do what you started out with here, observe. Learn. See if something's wrong. Stay out of trouble."_

"Yeah… okay…"

" _And one other thing; from what I saw from your relationship with the Mikaelsons when I was… well… not entirely sane, they do like you. They like you a lot, enough for them to open their home to you. To give you money so you can have things. In all honesty I was glad that Klaus gave that to you because you've always refused me or Damon helping you out financially. You were family to them, and they don't take that word lightly. They wouldn't have turned their backs on you that easily."_

"So there is something fishy going on?"

" _There's a great chance something is wrong, yes. So, as I said; observe and learn. Stay out of trouble and you'll soon be knowledgeable enough to fix things. I have to go. I will have Damon call you when he's back."_

"Thanks Stefan," she smiled and disconnected the call, feeling slightly better than before. If something was wrong with the Mikaelsons, she was going to find out and make sure they would never do that to them again. No matter if she had to shed blood to do so.

~o.O.o~

For the next few weeks, Bella did her homework. She had plastered a large piece of paper on the wall of her hotel room and drew lines from names to names; mostly following Davina around and seeing where she went. She often went to a little tea shop near the Seamen's church, a shop lovingly ran by a girl called Ann, and upon further inspection, it was one of _the_ places to get herbs for spells without being frowned upon by other witches.

It was something that Bella had noticed; Davina wasn't really favored by the other witches in the Quarter; the word was that she had left the coven to start out on her own and then there was this story about how she nearly destroyed New Orleans by not wanting to participate in the Harvest. Now that Davina was hanging out with vampires, she had completely fallen out of grace, but it was Ann who managed to restore a little bit of Davina's grace by selling her herbs.

Bella was in the middle of eating a beignet on her way to the Regent's house when she received a message on her messenger app.

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _I would have figured you'd contact me sooner. K._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Been a little busy._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _We need to meet. Come meet me at Jackson Square and let's look at some paintings?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _When?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Now?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Don't you think that's inappropriate? Sneaking behind Myriam's back to meet me?_

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _It's just a meeting, Bella, I have some information for you that you might find useful._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Jokes are lost in text, aren't they? Meet me in my hotel room. Hades gave me a little present to ward against prying eyes, as an apology for keeping me there so long._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Now who's being inappropriate?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _I'll admit you're hot but my heart belongs to your brother._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Well, Kol will be sad to hear that you're secretly in love with Elijah._

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Ew._

 _ **TrashPanda:**_ _Of course, should things not work out between you and Kol, and should Myriam and I have a falling out, there's always the chance that we could try and see if we're compatible?_

 _ **CeilingCat:**_ _Just come meet me!_


	19. Chapter 19

Bella's heart nearly bounced out of her chest when there was a subtle knock on her hotel room door before she realized it was Klaus on the other side of it. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door, finding herself staring at an incredibly huge bundle of wildflowers. "Are you shitting me?"

Klaus lowered the flowers and grinned as he got inside the hotel room. "Seeing as I do wish to keep you as a potential mate when Myriam decides she has had enough of me, I brought you some chocolate as well."

Bella narrowed her eyes on him as she closed the door and leaned against it.

"What? No hug?"

"That depends, are you here to kill me?"

"Bella, you and I both know you can't be killed," he replied, a gentle smile on his face. "Granted, since your disappearance, I have moments where I imagine pulling your head off your shoulders and tearing off your limbs, but I assure you, today is not going to be that day."

She crossed the space between them as fast as she could and hugged him, tightly. Not wanting to let go. For weeks she had felt so alone, so scared and with no one to talk to, and now Klaus was here. Actually here and seemingly in his right mind. Bella could feel the weight lift off her shoulders and couldn't stop herself from crying.

"It's alright," he said softly, pulling her even closer against him. He understood her frustration, her loneliness, her anger and her sadness. For the last few months she had to do everything by herself, and for what reason? He hadn't even sent her a message since the night she brought him the moonstone rings with his blood in them, while he should have, but merely thought that would be wrong. It had been a conversation with the bartender he realized that he hadn't been a good friend to Bella, at all. "I'm sorry for having ignored you, Bella, I truly am." He had a hurt young woman in his arms, not the mighty and scary demigoddess everyone had become so afraid of. People often forgot that beneath all the abilities, there was a person. And he was certainly guilty of that, too. He had a lot to make up for.

"It's not just Kol," she sobbed. "I overheard Myriam and Rebekah talk and… I'm also pretty sure Elijah hates me even more and-"

"Breathe, little Swan," he said calmly, rubbing her back. "It's all going to be alright. We'll figure it out."

She wasn't sure for how long they stood there, but frankly, she didn't care. With Damon still lost somewhere, she was relieved Klaus was still with her, still alright with her. Once she had calmed down, she still didn't let go of him. "Hades kept me for as long as he did to teach me control. He turned down the ghost stuff and taught me more abilities, something Helios should have done but didn't. And I had to clean up the mess that I made… so many souls in the Underworld, I- I fixed it."

"And then you come back and your boyfriend is seeing someone else."

"Yes. Why? How?" She looked up to him, pleadingly.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Klaus replied as he let go of her to get her a glass of water. He was relieved to find her in a decent hotel, that she was using the money he had given her two years ago. He wasn't quite sure what he'd do if he would have found her in one of the lesser hotels of New Orleans. "Kol spent a month in Forks, waiting for you at your family home. However, Elijah and I ran into some problems here in New Orleans and I recalled Kol to come and help us while he waited for you here. A week later, he walked in the compound with a new brunette on his arm and shortly after that, we all realized you'd abandoned us. That you used us and abandoned us, that there was nothing we could do, either, seeing as you're a monster."

"Me?"

"I found that thought disturbing, yes," Klaus replied as he handed her the glass of water. "You do everything in your power not to kill people, you have the biggest heart of all the people I've met and you're certainly not in possession of any malignant bone in your body."

"But how?"

"I believe due to some sort of spell," Klaus sighed as he sat down in a chair, looking at her as she stood there with her glass of water. "I don't think the source to be Davina, she seems to be truly infatuated with Kol, which is why I wanted to meet with you. Perhaps you could investigate the Regent, Madam LaRue?"

"Why would the witches want to mess with you, though?"

"It has everything to do with the balance of power. There aren't many vampires left in New Orleans because the werewolves killed them or the witches hurt them. Or, I have to admit, we had to kill four dozen of them for refusing to side with us and still remain loyal to Marcel. The witches are afraid we'll go after them next and decide to be proactive?" He scratched his head in confusion. "In any case, we have dealt with a lot worse."

Bella sat down in the chair, a pensive look on her face. "What if this isn't about you?"

"Bella," Klaus laughed. "We're the Original vampires, everyone fears us, even the Ancestors. They know what we're capable of."

"Really?" Bella countered. "A few minutes ago you said you believed me to be a monster. You, the big bad Hybrid, calling me a monster. What if this isn't about you and what if whatever is happening to you is because of me?"

"Don't be ridiculous."

"Then why did you tell me you thought of me like that? Because I _am_ more powerful than you. I can do more than just turn people into animals, smack them against walls and turn invisible. I resurrected Kol from the dead. All of this, without having to use magic. I am not bound by the same laws of nature you are. Or the witches are. Frankly, if I didn't have a good head on my shoulders, I could be that monster quite easily. A loose canon."

Klaus blinked at her and fell back in his chair. "To be honest, I have no idea why I said that. I know you're capable of so much more, but I've never seen you as a threat, Bella," he said thoughtfully before a wicked smile appeared on his lips. "The Ancestors might see you as a direct threat. There is no doubt they'd try to stop us from reorganising the Supernatural community of New Orleans, but with us, they don't have to fear for losing power. Perhaps by influencing the family you're close to would ensure you'd stay away?"

"If that's the case, they're awfully wrong and they don't know me at all," Bella muttered, itching to find out if Klaus' theory was correct. "Because you may be right, I don't have a malignant bone in my body but they don't know who the hell they're messing with and it ends as soon as I confirm this theory."

"And how are you going to do that?"

"Well, first, I'm going to mess with Davina and talk to Kol. Then, I'm going to track down that Regent and snoop around. And then…" Bella smirked as she thought of something. "I might do something to scare the shit out of the Ancestors and find a way to shake the rest of your siblings out of the hold they supposedly have on them. But only when it's true. There could be another explanation, but let's go with this one for now." Bella set her glass down on the table and got to her feet. "Would you like to come outside with me?"

"What are you going to do?" Klaus said suspiciously. "I thought you didn't want to be seen in the French Quarter."

"I don't, but we have to start somewhere," Bella said as she took Klaus' hand and tugged on it. "Come, let's have some fun!"

"Wait," he let out a snort, loving her new found enthusiasm, albeit a bit on the darker side of things. "How are we going to prevent me being influenced again and tell everyone about your plans?"

"Hmm… yes," Bella said as she looked around, finding the little golden bowl Hades had sent down to her. She put her hand in it and retrieved a coin, placing it in the palm of Klaus' hand.

"What's that?"

"I don't know," Bella shrugged. "But Hades said this bowl keeps out prying eyes, so I guess everything coming from it will do the same?"

"You're not sure?" Klaus laughed as he put the coin in his pocket. "Very well then, I'm honored to be your test subject."

She took him to not an all too crowded space, which was proving to be difficult in the heart of New Orleans, but managed to find a spot eventually. "So, where's Kol? At your home?" Bella asked as she looked around Klaus to see Davina approach them.

"Yes, I believe so."

"Good, hold on," Bella said as she pushed her bag into his arms and picked up an exotic animal from behind him. Walking back around Klaus with the Sloth in her arms, she smiled up at him. "But first, we need to take this little girl to safety. Doesn't Rebekah run an animal rescue center?"

"Davina?"

Bella hummed as she looked down on her clothes. "Hey, look at that, it worked!" She smiled up at Klaus again. "Another new thing I can do, don't you like it?"

"This is your idea of going to talk to Kol?"

"Yeah?" Bella said as she readjusted Davina Sloth in her arms and started to walk in the direction of Rebekah's shelter. "Do you think I can pull it off?"

From the surface, Bella did look like Davina. As if she was her doppelganger. There was something about her walk though, that felt off. And of course, Davina was a pushy little brat, could Bella pull that off? "I don't know, can you? You need to adjust your walk, don't slouch. Davina is very narcissistic in everything she does."

"Oh, God, this Sloth is getting heavy," Bella sighed exasperatedly. "And I think it's chewing on my hair. Care to trade me for my bag? I don't wish Kol to see me with a hair out of place!"

"She's not like Caroline, love," Klaus laughed and shook his head. "With narcissistic I meant full of herself, confident. As if she owns every inch of the world, she is, of course, one of the most powerful witches in New Orleans and dating an Original."

"Barf," she said as she nearly fell flat on her face. "Stupid heels!"

"Well, she is quite short," Klaus laughed as he had caught her mid fall. "You'll be alright."

"Worst. Idea. Ever." Bella readjusted Davina Sloth again and rounded a corner. "Luckily, we don't have to go far for Rebekah's place."

"Actually, the animal rescue center is yours. It's in your name. Rebekah is merely the manager in your absence," he replied with a shrug. "Of course, Rebekah's medical knowledge is extensive and you'll have to learn a lot, but you're still the owner of that building. It was your idea, after all."

"Even after?"

"Well, it was one of the first things we set up, we didn't know you were going to be gone this long, and I wanted to make sure you had something to do upon your return."

She blinked at him. "Are you sure you're not in love with me? Because setting me up an animal shelter sure is a lot of work and I doubt you helped Myriam with her brothel. Do they know it's in my name?"

"No, they don't," Klaus smiled at her. "I intend to keep it that way until your proper return, once everyone is in their right minds. I'm fairly certain Rebekah won't mind, but she'd likely insist on franchising. It's doing quite well, you see."

"Then just give it to her," Bella laughed, finding it strange to hear Davina's laugh. "I'll think of something else to do."

"You're not going to disappear again?"

"Oh, I sure as hell hope not or I might actually hurt someone," she said grumpily as they turned another corner and headed straight for the animal rescue center.

"Davina! What a lovely surprise," Rebekah greeted her as she walked around the counter before freezing in her steps. "Is that what I think it is?"

"A sloth? Yes," Bella replied as she handed the animal over to Rebekah. "Please be gentle with it? Wouldn't want anything bad to happen to this girl, would you?"

"I shall be ringing the zoo and ask them if they lost one of their animals… if not… Kol's blasted ex is still in town," Rebekah said disgusted and it was then when Bella saw it; the dark glow around Rebekah, a clear sign for Bella that Rebekah was indeed, spelled.

Quite disappointing, really. Bella had hoped she could wreak some havoc while trying to figure out what the hell was going on and now it seemed like there were witches involved. Remembering that she somehow could cleans spells off of items such as the champagne at the Mikaelson ball, she reached out to Rebekah and saw the dark glow lessened, but not disappeared completely. Which was lame, as it meant that whomever put that spell up, had put some effort into it. Maybe there was a human element to it, maybe there wasn't. In any case, now Bella looked like Davina, there wasn't a lot she could do.

"Thank you," Bella replied with a smile before turning to Klaus. "Weren't you like… picking up Myriam or something?" She tried to sound as bored as she possibly could. "I'm on my way to see Kol, maybe the two of you would like to walk with me?"

"Why can't I come?" Rebekah demanded, still with the sloth in her arms. It took a mere nod from Bella to the sloth for Rebekah to sigh and retreating with Davina sloth.

Klaus took Bella next door to Myriam's establishment, excitedly informing her that there are plans to buy the building next door as well and branch out, as Myriam's brothel was quite successful. There were plans for a nightclub and more rooms for her girls. He also warned Bella that Myriam wasn't a big fan of Davina and for Davina to be in her establishment was almost as if she was declaring war to her.

"I thought everyone liked Davina?"

"No, love. Myriam and I merely tolerate her because Kol's smitten and Rebekah and Elijah don't make a fuss out of the witch, either," he replied kindly. "Besides, it's a good thing to have a powerful witch on your side instead of against you, especially in a city as New Orleans."

"Great, maybe I should wait outside then."

"Too late, she's already here," Klaus grinned and left her alone to greet his girlfriend. "Behave," he said playful as a warning to his girlfriend before he softly kissed Myriam's lips.

"I thought I told you, and her, that she's not welcome here?" Myriam hissed, grabbing Klaus' arm and dug her nails into it. "What are you doing with her, anyway?"

He gently removed her hand from his arm and maneuvered her arm through his. "We found a sloth in the street, Davina thought it was only proper to deliver it to Rebekah," he explained while walking back to Bella. "She also divulged she was going to give Kol a stern talking to about his ex-girlfriend and I assumed you wanted to see the fireworks."

"Assuming makes an ass out of you and me," Myriam sighed but relented. "I need to get out of this place for a couple of hours anyway. How about after watching the lovebirds fight, we retreat to your bedroom?"

"Of course," Klaus smiled at her.

"I'm so sorry, Myriam," Bella apologized, seeing the same dark glow around Myriam as she had seen around Rebekah. "I completely forgot you didn't want me in here but…"

"It's fine," Myriam snapped as she pointed to the door. "Let's go then."

Bella brushed Myriam as she passed to get out first, and by the time they were all outside, Bella could tell Myriam's glow had completely gone. Smiling to herself, Bella fell into step next to Klaus. "The Ancestors won't like it that Bella's lingering in this city."

"Yeah well, maybe it's a good thing she's back, the Ancestors deserve to be kicked down a notch," Myriam replied, sounding quite shocked by her revelation. "I mean… I…" she looked at Klaus in confusion. "It's not good, is it? I mean, don't get me wrong, I still hate her for not giving us a sign of life over the years but I miss my friend."

"It's quite alright, love, don't worry," Klaus assured her. "As is your hatred towards Bella for not telling us where she was, but I'm quite certain she has a perfect excuse."

Myriam huffed. "As always."

"You'll have to forgive her for her silence, my love, it's not as if we've both been honest with her either, especially not in the beginning."

The vampire scowled in return. "But still!"

Realizing that Klaus wanted to keep Myriam in the dark as to who Davina truly was at the moment, Bella focused on her posture and her walk the entire way to the compound. She was itching to give Kol a piece of her mind, probe him about the ideas he and Davina had thought of for putting her down and then kill him. Oh, if only. She'd rather kill Davina right now and Kol back where he belonged; with her.


	20. Chapter 20

"Kol!" Bella called out for him, trying not to wince at how Davina's voice sounded. It was almost as if she was calling for a puppy to come and heel, and, not surprisingly, Kol did just that.

"I thought we weren't going to meet today, Davina?" Kol smiled at her, giving her a peck on the cheek as they were in front of Klaus and Myriam.

Despite the physical touch, there was pretty much a dark glow around Kol, and a part of Bella loved the challenge as Myriam had been too easy, but she didn't like it. Davina was going to pay for all of this and Bella was really fighting herself on this; now Davina was temporarily turned into a sloth, she'd be so easy to kill. "I changed my mind," Bella replied, looping her arm through Kol's and pulled him towards one of the couches in the courtyard. "I need to pick your brain for a little bit, if that's alright."

Kol smiled at her then. "Of course, but sometimes I have to wonder if you're only with me because I know so much about you witches."

Bella thought for a moment and looked at him, a serious look on her face. "I might be, would that bother you?"

"A little," Kol admitted. "Although I thought my handsome face was good enough for you."

She cocked her head as she gently caressed his cheek with her hand. "It is handsome, you're right about that. Did Bella fall for your looks then?" Bella was concerned the dark glow around Kol didn't even lessen. Granted, it was likely Davina was responsible for the magic befuddling the minds of those Bella loved, but what was this?

"Davina, we do not talk about her."

"Well, for arguments sake, we are. She's still in town and if I need to find a way to defeat her, I'd have to get to know her a bit better," Bella argued. "I just had to drop off a sloth at Rebekah's. Klaus can confirm that there was, indeed, a sloth."

Frustrated, Kol ran a hand through his hair and reached for the nearest alcohol bottle to make sure he wouldn't tear out Davina's throat. "Imagine it being like taking down Nik or one of us; you can't unless you have the White Oak Stake. Since we don't know what we need to use to take Bella down, the best option would be to create some sort of prison where she can't escape out of, causing her to have to spend eternity in that prison or until someone in her family decides to intervene."

Bella winced at that, hoping Kol hadn't seen it. She wasn't shocked he had thought about it, but the mere thought of having to spend eternity in a box or whatever wasn't appealing, at all.

"But Davina, despite the fact she left me, that she left us, doesn't mean she deserves a fate like that. She's not my favourite person at the moment but if anything, she's the one person who strongly fought against me being daggered again. Still, to this day, I believe the only reason I'm not boxed up is because Nik still likes Bella that much. Bella wasn't all bad. She's done a lot for this family, too."

Now, Bella was surprised by that. Even under Davina's influence, he still had his head screwed on the right way and not gone off and do terrible things as he'd done in the past. Or at least, not that she knew of. "Her presence in New Orleans is upsetting the Ancestors. She's the one person who could tip the balance in the direction of whomever she decides to side with. I mean, she moved on thousands of souls that were located at the Lake. She could easily wipe out the Ancestors, leaving us witches unprotected and without power."

"Don't be silly," Kol took a swig of the bottle. "You'd still be able to practise traditional magic."

She hit him on the head with the palm of her hand. "Are you on my side or what? I need the Ancestors, Kol. We all need the Ancestors. Not just the witches, but the werewolves and vampires are under their protection from outside forces like beings like Bella."

"She's harmless."

"She turned someone into a sloth! There is no way that sloth escaped from the zoo and ended up in the middle of the French Quarter. Who knows who that sloth may be? At least it's not the Regent!" Bella said angrily, finding it strange to be on the other end of things for a change. "I mean, what if someone manages to find a way to control her? She may be harmless, but if they find a way to do that…"

"I doubt the Gods will allow too much of damage. Relax, okay? Once she realizes I'm yours and yours alone, she'll go away," he said reassuringly, softly brushing her lips with hers. "And to answer your question, no, I don't think Bella was drawn to me due to my devilish good looks. She believed she and I had some connection and I was supposed to be her guide, I already told you this."

"Yeah, I know," Bella sighed as she tried to stop herself from jumping into his arms and kissing him senseless as Davina. It wouldn't feel right. "Sounds to me, though, that you're still in love with her, defending her so much."

"I'm just telling you what I know. Or what I knew. Who knows what she learned in the last two years?" Kol cupped Davina's chin and made her look at him. Why did her eyes look so sad? "I love you, Davina Claire. I'll meet with Bella, alone, and see if I can convince her it's only you I desire. Perhaps I can persuade her to go back to Mystic Falls."

"Do you think it will work seeing as she ignored your request the first time?"

"Bella's very understanding and she has a big heart. I'm sure that if I tell her the Ancestors don't want her here she'll leave."

Fat chance, Bella thought as she smiled at Kol. "If that doesn't work, though, we can continue our plans to put her in her version of the coffin, right?"

"Davina…" He really didn't wish that upon anyone.

"Right? She's threatening the balance, Kol. Just imagine she'd land herself a werewolf as a boyfriend, she'd go and protect them at all costs! Or she'd get a regular human and finds New Orleans isn't the place for the supernatural community and she'll fight us all!"

Kol winced. Davina was right. "Right. Yes. We'll continue to find a way to neutralize her, although I think we'll run into some issues with Nik if we do proceed."

Bella huffed as she looked over her shoulder to see Klaus and Myriam peek around the corner before looking back at him. "Not to worry, Kol, I will take care of your brother and his whore should they stop us. In fact, should your entire family be against us making sure Bella won't be able to disrupt everything, I'll take care of them, too."

Kol snorted. "And then what? Who's going to run the vampire faction?"

"Well, you are, of course," she gently pat his cheek. "Or we'll get Marcel back and have him do that for you."

Kol scowled at that. "Let's just keep my family intact."

"Whatever," Bella quickly kissed him. "Now, be a good pup and stay here while I go and pick things up. I'll be back in a bit." She had to leave before she'd reveal herself or burst out in tears. Or both. She was still angry with him, and would probably be for a long time for making himself available to be manipulated by the witch after Bella had been gone for just a month, but he didn't deserve this. Stupid Davina.

"Okay."

"And feed," Bella said as she got to her feet. "You look famished." This seemed to surprise him. Seriously? Was she regulating his blood intake as well? He looked alright, but he had looked better when fully topped off on blood. How the hell did he control himself? Was she controlling him somehow? "As much as you need." How was Klaus allowing this to happen to his brother? Was Davina that good at manipulating everyone with her magic and making family members blind to each other or did Klaus really not care that much about Kol after all?

The moment she set foot outside the compound, she turned invisible and released Davina from her slothiness. Bella imagined this being quite hilarious, Davina in a little cage and Rebekah freaking out. She was also going to be on so many shit lists but right now all she cared about was to go to the City of the Dead and yell at some Ancestors. Yeah, she was going to skip the Regent, she was only the middle man anyway.

Hades had taught her to dig deep inside of her to turn the dials of her ghost gifts when needed and oh, she was going to do some serious damage to them if they weren't going to give her what she needed; it all ended now. Today.

"Bella, stop," Hades appeared before her blocking her march to the cemetery. She knew she was still invisible, which meant he was as well. "You're far too angry."

"Damn right I am!" Bella said as she tried to move past him, but he stopped her by placing both of his hands on her shoulders and kept her in place. "Let me go!"

"Breathe," he said calmly, his eyes firmly fixed on hers. "You're not one to go off like this, you need to think about it."

"Why won't you fix this?" Bella said angrily, hitting his arms in an attempt for him to let go of her, tears were now rolling down her cheeks. "Or fuck that, just let me go and I'll wipe them all out!"

"No, you will not," Hades remained calm. "Because if you do, I will have to take you back and I won't ever let you go. Your Earth rights will be permanently revoked."

"I don't care! They're messing with my family. They're messing with the one person I feel normal with and he fucking hates me for leaving so long because of that. I have no doubt that bitch is deliberately keeping him low on blood to keep him deep under her influence and fuck that. If I fix this the way I want it to be fixed, then at least I know my family is free of them and I'll be happy!" The adrenaline released from her anger was coursing through her body and she loved the feeling of that. Her muscles didn't quite like it but she didn't care, she was ready to punch someone. To wipe out all the Ancestors. Fuck preserving the balance.

"You don't believe that, calm down and use your brain," Hades said encouragingly, squeezing her shoulders as he did. "Because Helios was right about one thing; you're the first one who's shown kindness, mercy and so much love towards others and don't allow your powers to corrupt you. Give in to the anger now, and there might not be a way back."

"Then fucking fix this."

"You know I can't."

Bella got quiet then, as if she realised something. "What if I can't fix this?"

Hades pulled her into a big hug, pulling her close against him. "I do believe you're making excellent progress on that, don't you think?" He tucked her hair behind her ear and made her look at him. "You figured out they're indeed spelled, Klaus is no longer under that spell - although I have to admit, he did most of it himself. I guess it's great to be this super hybrid. But you cleansed Myriam. You cleansed Rebekah, but she didn't quite like you anyway so the spell lingered, it might go away in time."

"I'm not even going to attempt to do it on Elijah. He's never liked me," she sulked.

"You figured out that the Ancestors are behind it, or the most likely suspects anyway and Davina's likely the conduit to it all. I'd say you're doing great," Hades said with a nod. "Very positive progress indeed. I think your next step would be is to find whatever Davina uses to have that hold on your beau and destroy said object. I'm sure you know a friendly witch somewhere."

Bella let out a grunt.

"Hey, I know I fucked up and should have given you the chance to at least check in on your family, but from what I understood was that they knew about the fact time moves differently where we are. You needed the time to get control and pay for sending so many souls to me."

"Still no apology."

"Nope. But how about this? Remember the tasks Hercules had to do? Like twelve before he could ascend to Mount Olympus? See saving your boyfriend from the claws of that deviant witch as one of your impossible tasks and your reward will be not one child, but as many as you two want? I could make him fertile for like a month a year to get you pregnant?"

"You're a fucking asshole," Bella scowled. "Who's to say I'll ever get him back? Or take him back, for that matter?"

"Your weeping heart tells me," Hades smiled at her. "I may be the God of the Underworld and fertility and shit, but I do know your heart is aching. And that is very unpleasant. But keep at it _your way_ and don't do anything stupid while you fix this. I have every faith in you that it'll work, just don't go blasting cemeteries filled with Ancestors, okay? Klaus is back to his senses, and so is Myriam. You have allies now. Use them."

"But I don't even understand why the Ancestors are afraid of me."

"Because you do have the power to wipe them all out and end Ancestral Magic," Hades reminded her. "You could tip the power balance, but we all know you won't. As long as they leave your family alone, you leave them alone. That's how it works and that's brilliant. They just don't know it - you - yet. Once you've fixed what you need to fix, go talk to the Regent and come to an agreement, allow her to get to know you the way we all have."

"Use my brain and keep my cool."

"Exactly," Hades nodded and let go of her. "Go to your hotel room and take a nice hot bath. Get some rest. Start tomorrow anew, who knows? People might surprise you."

"Doubt it," Bella muttered. "Thanks."

"You're very welcome. Now, I don't know if you still want to hide from the Ancestors, but if you do, don't forget to turn invisible again," he winked at her before he disappeared.

Bella looked around with bleary eyes and saw people stare at her again. She'd been so lost in her anger, sadness and her conversation with Hades she hadn't noticed they had turned visible. Turning invisible again, Bella started to make her way to the hotel. Hades had been right, of course. Bella had always tried to avoid killing people. She'd help them and then it would be their choice of what they did with the information.

Such as Silas and Amara, who she had turned into swans as an alternative to death; pretty much against their wishes but to Bella, the only reason. If they still wished to die, they'd have to kill themselves and that would be pretty easy as swans.

Who was she to depower an entire city of witches only because she was angry with those who gave them power? Since when had she lost the ability to use her words?

When she returned to the hotel, the bath was drawn and there was a huge plate of beignets waiting for her on the table, a large box of chocolates and a bottle of wine with a card from Hades.

 _Well deserved. Don't leave the hotel drunk! H_

Smiling, she made sure she could let off some steam on her laptop in the bath safely and once that was done, she undressed, poured herself a glass of wine and got into the tub, allowing the warm water caress her suddenly tired feeling body.

~o.O.o~

It took her a while to realize the banging on the door wasn't happening in her dreams. There was someone at her door. Glancing over at the hotel issued alarm clock, she could tell the time was 7 in the morning and she was nowhere near done sleeping. Whoever disturbed her sleep, was going to pay.

With a grunt, she kicked the covers off of her as the knocking didn't stop and managed not to trip on her way to the door. Being drunk of sleep was never a fun thing to have when having to do things. Bella pushed her hair out of her face before she opened the door.

Taken aback by the vision before her, she stumbled back into the room, giving her guest the opportunity to come inside and close the door. There was blood all over; his clothes, his face, his hands and there was a crazy look on his face that told her he was probably high on blood, too. The dark glow around him was nearly gone, but what was he doing here?

"I did it," Kol proudly said. "Nik won't be too happy with the bodies in the courtyard but I did it, Bella, I did it."

Rubbing her eyes to get rid of the sleep, she blinked at him.

"I figured it out! The Davina who visited me wasn't Davina, was it? It was you. And you told me to go feed!" Kol approached her, but she froze him into place. She wasn't scared of him or anything, but she wasn't awake enough to deal with this just yet. "You know, I didn't really know it was you until I headed out to go to the witches and then I saw you with Hades in the middle of the street and overheard you guys talk. Seeing you falling apart like you did, did something inside of me, Bella. It jolted me awake."

She turned around and quietly started to make some tea with the services supplied in the hotel room. While she couldn't hide the fact that her heart was aflutter with Kol in the same room with her and seemingly alright, she didn't trust him. This could also be a ruse. She had heard him talk about his plans when she was Davina. No, it wasn't going to be this easy for him.

"So I fed. And I fed. And some more. Oh, Bella, it felt glorious. It was messy and very bloody and it was amazing. Davina found me and stopped me, but your conversation with me and the one you had with Hades was still-"

Turning around, she looked at him. "Why are you here? What is so important that you have to interrupt my sleep?"

Kol giggled then. "The Ancestors might be really angry with me right now and this is the safest place I know. I mean, you've been hiding here for months, haven't you? They haven't found you, they won't find me here."

"You found me."

"I asked Nik where you were."

"I can see you're still spelled, Kol. I'm not stupid, but, assuming you're telling me the truth, what the hell did you do to piss off the Ancestors?"

"I fought Davina. She had used a binding and controlling spell on me and wasn't working properly anymore with me topped off on blood," Kol smirked, still frozen in place. "I drained her from all of her blood and burned her body outside New Orleans and I felt her hold on me disappear."

Yeah right. This couldn't be happening, it sounded too easy. Too much like the words she wanted to hear from him. "You what?"

"I killed Davina and made sure she couldn't join the Ancestors."

"I'm too tired for this shit," Bella muttered as she walked to the door and opened it before throwing Kol out and closing the door again. Satisfied with her handywork, she made it back to her bed in time for the kettle to pop to tell her that the water for her tea had been boiled. Bella rolled herself into her duvet and pulled a pillow over her head and went back to sleep.


	21. Chapter 21

Klaus and Myriam hadn't gotten much sleep that night, not that they needed it, vampires could go for a long time without any sleep, but it was the habit that was so nice. No, instead, they had watched Kol bring in revelers from the streets to drain them dry - while they had a perfectly stocked up blood fridge in the basement of the compound.

Kol hadn't been exactly careful with who he chose for a victim and Elijah was spending the morning at the police station to compel the officers while compelled servants were cleaning up Kol's mess in the courtyard. Getting rid of the bodies was easy, scrubbing blood off the walls and floor and making sure everything looked immaculate again wasn't.

And for some reason, watching the whole thing unfold in front of them was simply spectacular.

They weren't surprised when Kol returned to the compound and joined them on the pathway above the courtyard to oversee the cleaning up. "She kicked me out," he sulked, getting down from the high he was on just moments before.

Myriam looked at the vampire in disgust. "Do you blame her? Have you seen yourself?"

"I went straight over after killing Davina!" Kol whined. "I thought she'd be happy to see me, but instead she didn't say much and stopped me from pulling her into my arms and -"

"Again, do you blame her?" Myriam said again. "On top of that, we haven't been exactly welcoming her back ourselves due to that little troll."

"Speak for yourself, love," Klaus mused. "My encounter with Bella was quite pleasant. She was the one who brought the stones to me. Even when she knew we all weren't like ourselves, she looked out for us."

"Why didn't you tell us she'd been here?"

"Because it would give Davina another reason to go after Bella harder or perhaps I knew what you were going to say, who knows?"

"But I killed Davina. I'm no longer under her control. Bella shouldn't have kicked me out. I'm hurt," Kol sulked as he leaned over the bannister.

"You broke her heart, Kol. After your first encounter there were fractures, but after she posed as Davina to talk to you about her… we could hear her heart break from where we were."

"I wasn't myself!"

"No, but a part of Davina's spell factored in the humanity we still carry around with us. The human element. For example; Rebekah was cleansed yesterday after Bella and I dropped off Davina sloth, but Bella could tell the spell wasn't completely gone, merely because Rebekah has never truly liked her. Yesterday, Bella tried to cleanse you, but that was impossible. What did she say?" Klaus looked at his brother, he looked like a lost puppy and well deserved, too. If it hadn't been for him, they wouldn't have been in this mess right now.

"She said I was still spelled but, she also didn't make any attempt to remove the spell from me, either."

"Can you blame her?" Myriam said again, nodding to the way Kol looked. "The least you could have done was a change of clothes and a bath before trying to reunite with the girl whose heart you broke. Flowers. Chocolate. Anything."

Kol scowled. "She should have cleansed me and we should have talked it out."

"This is not about you, Kol," Klaus spat at him. "You told us about the conversation you overheard between Bella and Hades and you didn't learn anything from that? You didn't learn anything from the conversation you and Bella had before she resurrected you?"

"But the spell is-"

"No, Kol, this doesn't have anything to do with the bloody spell and you know it. It's likely you barged into her hotel room telling her that you need to be with her because there's no safe place for you once the Ancestors realize you've killed their star witch."

"I did, how do you know?"

"Because I know you, brother," Klaus sighed as he tiredly ran a hand through his hair. Oh, he really hoped his brother didn't blow his chance with Bella. Despite everything, Bella did not deserve that.

"Bella's still a girl, Kol," Myriam said kindly. "Clean yourself up, think about how you're going to make this all better for her and try again later. She was likely still asleep when you demanded her attention."

"But what if the Ancestors-"

"If you're so scared of their wrath, leave New Orleans."

"But what about Bella?"

"That's a choice you're going to have to make, buddy," Myriam said, pushing herself away from the bannister. "I have to go to work, will I see you later, Klaus?"

"Of course, love," he smiled at her. "I'll make sure I'll bring an excellent tasting lunch to you."

~o.O.o~

Bella wasn't ready to face Kol, at all. After the early morning interruption, Bella went back to sleep and after waking up, she got dressed and decided to spend her day at the zoo, still as the invisible woman because even if he had been telling the truth about killing Davina, it didn't mean the Ancestors were quite done with her. If anything, things were going to be a lot worse and she needed a game plan.

She needed to clear her head and start over. Or at least adjust her previous plan and do go to the Regent to talk things through. However, should Davina truly be dead, the Regent might even be less receptive to Bella than she'd already been.

She found it admirable that Kol had figured out a way to fight off the spell himself even if it meant killing Davina and seemingly a lot of innocents by the way he looked that morning, but she didn't like the fact that he had overheard her and Hades' conversation; that Kol had seen the state she was in.

Yes, there was nothing more that her heart wanted; Kol. But her head was wiser in this case; could she trust Kol with her heart again? Kol knew it could take some time for her to get back to him after being swooped up by one of her relatives; time moved differently and he knew that. Had he truly loved her like she loved him if he allowed a pretty young thing to get that close to him just because Bella was no longer in the picture?

Had Kol been with her merely of what she was instead of who she was? Had he been in love with her power only?

Granted, the way that they had rolled into their relationship hadn't been text book, either. She had felt an attraction to him, a connection, even when he was still daggered, and even during their travels, they never truly defined what they were to each other, but she supposed that referring to each other as boy and girlfriend was definition enough. But was it?

If he had truly overheard her conversation with Hades, why would Kol want to be with her now? Was it because together, he and her could produce tiny Mikaelson heirs with Hades' blessing? She knew of Rebekah's wish to be a human and start a family, maybe the blessing was better used on her instead of being wasted on Bella.

Besides, their kids would grow up knowing their mother's an abomination to the supernatural world, their father one of the mightiest vampires in the world and they'd be a combination of that, and a tiny bit of human. A God-Vampire-Human hybrid. It sounded like a recipe for disaster if the human part wasn't that much present anyway. Unless Hades could make it so that the children would be perfectly human or something.

Had she listened to her heart this morning in her sleepy state, she would have jumped on Kol in an instant, welcoming him back, making sure the spell around him was completely gone, but that would have been a bad thing all around. Her heart was still broken and she needed to protect what was left of it.

She was going to get her revenge on the Ancestors for what they've done to her family, and then, maybe, leave New Orleans to see if she could mend her heart and feel whole again.

 **TrashPanda:** Seems like we've got an unexpected guest today and he's asking for you. Coming to dinner?

 **CeilingCat:** I'm not in the mood to deal with Kol right now.

 **TrashPanda:** It's not Kol. Well, he will be at dinner but you're going to like this one.

 **CeilingCat:** No. I have other plans.

 **TrashPanda:** They can wait. Klaus is showing immense restraint not to kill this guest to allow you two to catch up. Dinner is in two hours. Be presentable, which shouldn't be a problem as we've sent something to your hotel room. Klaus is making sure everything is perfect because we have a lot to make up to you.

Bella sighed as she looked at her phone. She really didn't want to go. She wanted this Ancestor problem sorted as quickly as possible so she could disappear if she still so required. In fact, Myriam's demand made her feel angry again and she wasn't sure if it was a good idea to go.

 **CeilingCat:** No. I'm sorry, Myriam, but I really have to deal with this. It's because of me you guys were put in harms way and I need to fix it. Seems like all I'm doing these days is fixing my own mess.

 **TrashPanda:** Bella, you're not alone. Let us help.

 **CeilingCat:** No. This mess is because of what I am and I'm going to fix it.

 **TrashPanda:** Don't do anything stupid, Bella, I want you to be around for a long time.

Bella huffed as she turned her phone off and shoved it into her pocket. She took her time to get back to the hotel; she was going to grab a bite to eat and then head out to seek out the Regent. Screw the Mikaelson dinner. She really didn't want to see Kol right now. Her head was in charge, her heart deserved its rest.

Of course she wasn't going to do anything stupid, not after Hades' warning. One wrong move, and she'd be permanently banned from being on Earth while there was still so much she could see and do. To experience. It wasn't going to happen.

Maybe a solution would be she'd give up on her mother's side of herself, relinquish her powers and be an ordinary human again. It would be perfect as then, the Ancestors would definitely back off and Bella would never run into problems like that again. On the other side of the coin, it would also mean she'd have to leave her family here, for some reason it didn't seem wise to be human in a family of Original vampires.

Bella didn't trust the smell of food wafting down the corridor that lead to her room. Granted, someone could have ordered room service, but this smelled like a lot of food. Dreading to open her door, she did it anyway and inwardly cursed. Somehow - no, not somehow, this was the result of some compelling. Her bed was still there, but the rest of the room had been transformed into a private dining room with plenty of seats for the entire family. There was good food on the table and she was met by 5 pairs of hopeful looking eyes.

"Oh, hell no," Bella exclaimed as she put her bag on the bed. "I said no."

"I told you she wouldn't like it, Niklaus," Elijah said quietly, the spell still firmly in place on him, making Bella yet again wonder if Kol had truly killed Davina. "She doesn't deserve our kindness."

Bella narrowed her eyes on Elijah. "I want you all to leave, now," she said slowly, making sure that they all heard the words.

"We're doing this for your own good, Bella," Myriam said as she rounded the table to hug her friend, but didn't get the hug returned. "Remember, I know you. I know how much you like to retreat into yourself and-"

"Myriam, I said no." Before the other members of the family could speak, Bella turned them all into bunnies and sat down at the table to have something to eat in relative peace and quiet, only to be disturbed by someone slow clapping. Had someone been on the toilet? In her hotel room? Seriously? Looking up, she was surprised to see Damon, but it was a welcome surprise. "Damon!" She flew off her chair and flung herself around his neck to hug him tightly.

"Easy," Damon chuckled as he returned the hug. "One moment I'm freed from the prison world they sent me to, and sleeping it off on my bed, the next I wake up on Klaus' couch in his bedroom while he and Myriam were… well, that was quite embarrassing." Damon then thought for a moment. "Although, quite hot too, I wanted to join in but Klaus threatened to rip out my heart."

"I'm so glad you're back," Bella buried her face into his shirt. "When Stefan told me- I-"

"You're glad I'm back? Bella, I was only in that prison world for like… what? Three months or so? You were gone for two years! If there's anyone who should be glad someone's back it's me, for your return," he replied as he gently rubbed her back. "Hey, uhm, they were here to share dinner with you, not for you to eat it by yourself."

Bella huffed as she let go of Damon, grabbed the salad bowl and dumped the content on the floor in one giant heap. "There."

"That works," Damon shrugged as he pointed at the chairs. "Sit. Eat. Let's talk."

"No, because they'll hear everything and remember when I turn them back, so let's just eat," Bella said grumpily as she retrieved her plate and continued her food. "I have plans."

"Good, then I'll come with you to whatever you're going to do."

"Damon."

He put some food on his plate and shrugged. "Klaus told me what happened, sort of, I think I get it. I also understand you're a very stubborn person and you don't want their help. Not even Klaus' and Myriam's. This is your mess, not theirs, right?"

"Yes."

"And you don't want their help because they're a bunch of dicks who deserted you through a spell, right?"

"Right."

"Guess what? It's not your mess. It's simply the Ancestors being a bag of dicks and they have more experience dealing with Regents than you do," Damon said as he looked underneath the table. "Uhh… you might want to turn them back because two bunnies are now having sex."

"Wait, what?" Bella looked underneath the table and gasped. She grabbed the nearest glass and chucked it at them. "Quit it!"

"You might want to turn them back, Bella," Damon smirked before holding up his phone with an image of swanlings. "These little cuties were created by Silas and Amara."

"Oh god! I didn't know that could happen!" Bella squeaked before turning everyone back and pointed at the door. The last thing she wanted was for someone to get pregnant; vampires bodies worked the same as humans as long as they drank blood, and if she'd get Myriam or Rebekah pregnant, they would be able to carry the baby to full term. Gross. "Now get out!"

"Don't worry, Klausy-Klaus, I'll handle this."

Bella whipped her head back at Damon. "I will not be handled, Damon Salvatore."

"Of course not," Damon huffed as he cocked his head towards the retreating Mikaelsons. "Had to say something to get them to leave." When the door closed, he continued to eat. "I'm on your side, Bella. I understand what you want to do and I understand what they want to do, but seriously, they have more experience."

"It's because of me they were put in a vulnerable position in the first place. The Ancestors got spooked; I'm merely going to show them I'm not someone to be afraid of."

"But you are," he pointed out. "Especially with all the pent up anger you've got."

"I've got my anger under control," she huffed. "One misstep and Hades revokes my Earth privileges and I go 'poof' permanently, so don't worry, I've got it under control and I won't do anything other than stuff that won't hurt anybody," she bit down on a piece of chicken and sighed. "I just want to go back to being me. Get this fixed and maybe go back to Mystic Falls or something."

"You don't mean that."

"I don't?" Bella let out a snort. "Damon, I am the reason the Mikaelsons got messed with because a bunch of dead witches are scared of me. People are scared of me, of what I can do. My boyfriend is a jerk who couldn't keep it in his pants after an encounter with a gorgeous young brunette and instead of waiting for me, he moved on within two months and after hearing him talk about what he would do to neutralize me, I am not even sure I want him back. Spelled or not, knowing people are actively thinking about how to get rid of me is not a great thing to know."

"And here I believed you two had an epic love, like Stefan and Elena," Damon smirked as he leaned back in his chair. "Bella, love isn't easy. You haven't had a lot of boyfriends and your last ex has been permanently changed into a pig. Kol is a very needy vampire; he needs validation on a day to day basis that you love him. Of course, without-"

"Are you really trying to give a rational explanation about him being a cheating jerk? Really?" She took a sip of her wine and shook her head. "Vampire or not, what he did was wrong."

Damon shrugged. "Fine, whatever. Things are very simple, Bella, and they're easily fixed, just allow your family to take care of it. To take care of you. Maybe in this case, it's better to let them handle the Ancestors. Elijah may not like you, but he does know you wouldn't do anything out of malice. The last thing you want is for people to get hurt and if you ask him to talk to the Regent for you, she'll understand and the Ancestors will back off."

"Witches are backstabbing bitches," Bella muttered. "They'd 'back off' for a while, before regrouping and coming back full blast. On top of that, if Kol was speaking the truth about Davina, he'll be having a target on his back as well. At least I know I'll be able to make sure he'll be safe from them, too."

"And you are too invested in this. Too close. Not a good idea."

"Says the person who likes to make rash decisions that eventually come back to bite him in the ass and still hasn't learned from his mistakes."

Damon sighed as he reached into his pocket, revealing something wrapped in cloth as he handed it to Bella. "I so wished I didn't have to do this," he said, regret evident in his voice.

"What's this?"

"A gift, open it."

She narrowed her eyes on her friend before pulling the corners of the cloth back, revealing a beautiful shaped stone. It was polished and it looked absolutely perfect. But why was a stone a gift? Bella picked it up to examine it even further, but before she could, the world spun out of existence.


	22. Chapter 22

Bella awoke with her teeth sunk into someone's neck. She loved the taste of blood, to hear the life slowly leave her victim's body. Bella found this strange; this immense like of blood. It wasn't merely a like, it felt like a need, almost as if she needed more to prevent herself from dying.

"Kol, are you quite done?"

Bella sighed exasperatedly, wondering why she was being referred to as Kol. She released her meal and sat up, looking up at Elijah, who was wearing the funniest of clothes. "Oh, bother, Elijah! Is this truly necessary?" It was as if she didn't have any control over her actions but as if she was in someone else's body - Kol's. What was going on?

"Brother, the road is a major thoroughfare- if the bodies are found, word of our presence will spread to Mikael," Elijah sounded spooked and impatient. Come to think of it, there was a feeling of fear inside of her - Kol - , as well.

"We have run through autumn and winter, through sleet and snow... Are we cursed to forever live in fear of our father?" Rebekah was fed up.

"I should say yes, sadly." Bella found it humorous that Finn sounded like a boring stick in the mud even back then, nothing had changed. She nearly applauded when Elijah pointed at Finn in annoyance. The pointing thing hadn't disappeared at all. Deciding to ignore the rest of the siblings, Bella could feel her move back to drinking the man Kol had been feeding off of.

"Finn, please. Niklaus-" Elijah looked back at his brother who was petting the horse, trying to find some backup in the argument he was having with his siblings.

"Do we have any idea where we're running to next?"

Once the man was fully drained of his blood, the body was dropped on the floor and Bella could feel herself standing up and walking towards the rest of the Mikaelsons, letting out a deep sigh. "Why not just do what we've all thought of doing? Split up!"

"We swore a vow!"

"Your vows haunt me more than Father himself, Nik! At least he can't chase us all. I say we take our chances." Kol felt alone, even with his siblings. Finn, Rebekah and Elijah did everything in their power to protect their brother Nik and Kol hated that. What about him? He didn't want to do everything in his power to protect Nik as he was more than capable of doing himself. Nobody listened to him anyway. What was his role in this family?

"Perhaps Kol is right-"

Really? Finn stood up for him? Oh, he was hopeful now. "Thank you, Finn! Yeah, I've always said, 'Oldest is the most intelligent-'"

"Stop talking."

The rejection hit hard. Bella could tell this wasn't the first time Kol had felt rejected by his family, but this broke her heart. Finn was a jerk and he made her angry. And hungry. Oh, maybe there was a dead body left with some blood in them.

What happened next was she was hit by rejection upon rejection upon rejection in the various moments of Kol's life, all the way to France, where they hid as nobility, to Italy, where they lived together for awhile. She loved how Kol felt when he was alone with Klaus; causing chaos and mayhem all over, feeding indiscreetly and partying as if they had nothing to lose. Elijah was often the one reminding them to be more careful, but Kol always managed to pull Klaus along with him.

To stave off boredom, and to protect themselves from the so-called "Five", they pretended to be mortals and Kol grew incredibly bored. It was no fun to play hide and seek with his victims and the many whores he bedded weren't enough either. Oh, he was a gluttonous pig, alright, but at least his temporary bedmates gave him the attention he so desperately craved from his siblings.

After being daggered the first time by a member of the Five and thankfully rescued by his brothers, Kol decided he had had enough and left his family behind. What followed were years of fun, enlightenment and intelligence; soaking up all the information of the witches; learning from them and teaching others.

Revisiting their Viking roots, he joined his siblings in Copenhagen for awhile before following them to Spain, despite being hit again and again by rejection and pain. Kol drew comfort from the fact that at least Finn was still daggered and unable to pester him.

~o.O.o~

"Wow, I had no idea that it would actually work," Kol said surprised. "I mean, traditional magic didn't work, but dark objects?"

"Well, you've been contemplating on it for the last two years on how to bring her down," Damon shot at Kol. "Now you've got your answers. Congratulations," he added sarcastically. "And you had to use me, seriously? Dude, she's going to be so mightily pissed with you."

"You were the only one who could get close enough and you haven't been back on vervain due to your vacation to that prison world so," Kol shrugged. "Means to an end."

"Oh, I could get close," Klaus said casually. "But I refused. I prefer to stay on her good side."

"So, where do you think she is now?"

Kol looked at Damon and shrugged. "Could be Copenhagen… could be Spain… or somewhere in between."

"I still think it's appalling that you created a dark object to put us through your misery, Kol," Elijah said disapprovingly as he watched the last compelled waiter take away the extra chairs and tables they had used for their dinner surprise. "If anything, you made your own life miserable."

"Sure, Elijah, remind me to use it on you next, then," Kol retorted angrily. "Because admit it, the only reason I'm currently still out of my box is because of her, and because of the spell that was put upon us."

"He has a point," Rebekah said from her spot in one of the comfortable chairs Bella's room offered. "Maybe forcing her to live through Kol's misery isn't the best solution to our problems, but it's all we've got. It likely won't fix anything."

Kol toyed with Bella's hair to stop himself from lashing out. "Probably not, but she needed the time out before she'd do something stupid. She may not like us very much for our betrayal, but there was no point reasoning with her."

"Yeah, she pretty much wants your balls on a silver platter," Damon snorted.

"That's only because she's inside her head. She's good at making the decision to listen to her head or her heart instead of having them work in harmony. She's done this before," Myriam took a sip of her glass of wine. "But it wasn't as bad as this and we could talk her out of it all. Perhaps learning a bit more about the history of the Mikaelsons will jolt her back to using both." She let out a breath then and took another sip. "Her heart got broken, maybe seeing Kol persevere through his misery and achieve things will warm her heart a little and coax it to mend itself a little."

"Wouldn't it be simpler to call out to Hades and have him instruct her again?" Elijah asked, but already knew the answer when Kol, Myriam and Damon narrowed their eyes on him in anger.

"You would like that, wouldn't you?" Kol snapped. "If it were possible, you would run off to Hades or any Greek God and tell them about Bella and how she's misbehaving. That she's wrong. There's nothing more that you want. You want them to take her away from us. From me."

"She doesn't even want you anymore, Kol."

"Because I wronged her!"

"Oh, that gives me a shot, doesn't it?" Damon smirked as he sat down on the floor. "Oh, me and Bella, the possibilities…"

"Hardly, mate," Klaus finally spoke up, an amused smile on his face. "Bella's biological father was Zach Salvatore."

"Then again," Myriam added playfully. "She's a demi-goddess of the Greek variety, the gods are known to sleep with their relatives."

"Oh, no. No, no, no, no," Damon shook his head. "You're messing with me!" Oh god, what if somehow Zach's baby with Gail survived all these years ago and grew up to be Bella? Talk about epic guilt trip.

"Ask her yourself when she comes to," Klaus laughed and looked over to his brother, who still had his eyes firmly fixed on his other brother. "Kol," he warned him.

"Do you still carry a dagger on you, Nik?" Kol questioned, slowly rising to his feet. "Because I'm just itching to put one into Elijah."

Elijah blinked as he got his handkerchief and started to toy with it. "What did I do?"

"Your suggestion of returning her to Hades doesn't sit well with me, brother," Kol could feel his anger echo through his body, he needed to kill something or dagger his brother, or likely both. "Because if you've been paying attention, that would mean she won't ever return at all."

"Would her absence be such a bad thing?"

He lunged at Elijah then, wanting to throttle him, but Klaus interjected and blocked Kol's path to his brother. "Nik!"

"As much as I would like to kill our brother for that remark, let's not," Klaus said calmly, pushing his younger brother away from their oldest. "Need I to remind you he's still spelled?"

"Spelled or not, he's never liked her," Kol said, venom dripping from his words. "But even Rebekah wouldn't go as far as wanting Bella to permanently leave!"

Elijah huffed as he tucked away his handkerchief. "Very well, then allow me to finish what she started. I shall go to the Regent and broker a deal with her so she'll leave us, and Bella, alone."

Damon objected. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Stay out of this, Damon, you're not part of this."

"You made me a part of this! You compelled me to be all buddy buddy with Bella and give her that stupid stone and thus I should have a say in things. You don't want to interfere with Bella's plans when it comes to the Regent. Trust her."

"That's the problem, he doesn't," Rebekah replied, bored. "Fact of the matter is that I don't, either, but she seems to be able to work miracles. If Elijah wishes to speak to the Regent, who are we to stop him? He always gets results."

"You people are unbelievable," Damon threw his hands up in defeat.

~o.O.o~

Oh, Kol sensed the arrival of his brothers long before they started to shout his name to come forward and have a 'chat'. He'd seen the fires of Cadiz, it wasn't his problem. Kol was bored and had thrown himself a party. He could only imagine the look on his siblings' faces once they'd enter the cottage. Elijah would be severely appalled and disgusted, and Nik would be somewhere between amused and disgusted, unless there was something else going on. Then Nik would be absolutely pissed off.

Kol wasn't scared of Nik. Or Elijah.

"All of my efforts to keep this family concealed, yet debauchery like this has led Father directly to us," Elijah sounded aggravated, just as Kol had suspected. The high and mighty Elijah didn't like baby brother making a mess.

"Kol! Show yourself! This is no time for games!" Klaus shouted at nothing in particular.

Oh, perhaps it was time to see what his brothers wanted from him. Dragging the woman he was feeding of with him, he stumbled back into the cottage for the shock effect and it worked. Draining the woman to death, he dropped her to the floor and smiled widely at his siblings. "Come, come, brother! It's always time for games!" He reached for the nearest mug filled with alcohol and lifted it towards Klaus in a toast.

"We must leave. Mikael is very nearly upon us."

Sighing, Kol sat down and put his feet on the table, relaxing in his seat. "Elijah, if Mikael were upon us, I imagine Niklaus would be quite dead."

"I barely escaped! Father left the head of my horse on a pike in the town square!"

"Aw, he killed poor Theo? What a beast! But then, Father's always hated you most. Surely he'll chase you if you flee, leaving me here. Perhaps I'll make myself mayor?"

"Rebekah and Finn have already boarded the ship. It is imperative we remain together."

Bella could already see the rest of the scene unfold; Kol was going to be even more uncooperative and his brothers would dagger him. It was his biggest fear. He wasn't afraid of his siblings; he was afraid of the dagger.

"No! I swear to you, the day will come when I'm not so easily subdued! And on that day, I will make you suffer!" Kol objected as he struggled against Elijah's hold on him.

"Perhaps! But, today is not that day," Klaus replied as he shoved the dagger into Kol's heart. The pain of the dagger entering his body, piercing his skin, flesh and bones and his heart was too much. Then the desiccation began; his skin contracting and drying out, freezing him in place. It didn't feel as bad as when he was daggered by one of the Five. No, this was worse. Elijah and Klaus manhandled him, throwing him over a horse so they could ride to safety; there was no doubt another coffin was waiting for him at the ship. With every bump, it felt as if the dagger slipped in further and further. It felt as if his veins were breaking and anything else in his body shifting from one side to the other. The motion made him sick.

Bella wanted to scream but couldn't. As she had already proven once, being desiccated didn't mean you didn't feel, hear, anything anymore. Kol heard and felt everything. The motion of the ship. The rats scurrying around in the hold over his coffin. The feeling of fire underneath his skin, slowly burning and never gaining intensity.

It seemed like an eternity until Kol felt hope again from being daggered. Klaus' voice was faint, but getting closer by the second. "If only there was someone with whom I could share a bit of roguery. Oh, yes! That's right! There is!" Kol could feel how Klaus pulled the dagger from his chest and for the first time in a very long time, Kol's body slowly returned back to normal and he was freaking hungry.

Elijah sounded horrified. "You didn't!" Kol couldn't find himself to care for poor Elijah, he was thankful Nik allowed him his freedom, but where were they? As his brother laughed like a madman and ran off to distract Elijah, Kol willed himself to wake up fully and stumble out of the coffin, looking for blood.

Kol applauded his brother for having such nice tasting servants and clapped after he finished the last one. "Bravo! That was delectable. But make no mistake, Nik- I'm still cross that you daggered me. But, as far as apologies go, it's a start!"

"So, this is your idea of fun?" Elijah was angry with Nik. This was fascinating.

"Well, you and Marcellus have grown thick as thieves... why should I be alone?"

A flash of regret washed over him before he quickly dismissed it. If he had to believe Nik's words, and his own feelings, it meant that the only reason Kol was out of the box was that his brother was bored. Who was this Marcellus, anyway? Where were they on the planet? What year was it? How long had he been out for?

Over the course of a couple of days, Kol discovered who Marcellus truly was; some slave boy Nik had saved from his masters and wanted to raise as his own. Great, one more person to fight for for attention. Apparently, Elijah had stepped in at some point and the boy had now become Elijah's little toy.

New Orleans was a blast; having fun with Nik was just amazing. Especially when they went to that tenement building and slaughtered all those people. Because it was fun and because they could. Elijah, of course, wasn't happy. He was going off again about keeping a low profile and Niklaus being amused by the fact that Elijah had time to keep an eye on his younger brothers seeing as he was taking care of Marcellus all the time.

Kol should have listened to his own fears. Disappointment and rejection were once again the main feelings he was having right now; and hunger. He always got hungry when getting too emotional about stuff.

"You would punish the boy for Kol's antics? I would just as soon put him in a box!"

Oh, for fuck's sake. "You'd choose that little whelp over your own family?" That was offensive. That is offensive. Kol was offended. Just as he thought, he was going to have to fight this little whelp for his brother's attention.

"That "little whelp" is our family!"

That was it. The boy, family? Very well. Kol was going to teach the boy something of his own; what it's like to be a vampire, what things you'd do as a vampire. He was going to scare the boy shitless and perhaps the boy would run away. For good. Out of their lives. The easier thing would just to kill him, but that was the easy way out.

Wasn't Elijah teaching him Hamlet? Oh, he knew that there was a daggering hanging over his head, why not go out with a little bit more fun?

As expected, his real life teachings of Hamlet to Marcellus was perhaps a little bit too much fun, but he got his revenge on his brothers in the end despite being daggered. Oh, Kol had plans, and he was going to make them all come true once Nik would undagger him again.

Kol wasn't Finn. Kol was fun and smart and someone his brother Niklaus occasionally liked to have fun with. Kol wasn't going to be daggered for long, he knew that now. He wasn't happy about it and one day he wasn't going to be daggered anymore. No, it would be Niklaus who would be in this situation.

 _Kemiya_ taught him to make Dark Objects. If only he could find a couple of witches to work with him…

It took eighty long years for Nik to finally undagger him again, with a request for help. Seeing as Kol liked the witches so much, maybe he could help bring some sort of balance in the supernatural community of New Orleans. Kol was surprised they were still in New Orleans. His family must truly like it here.

Instead of acting out, Kol went to work like the good little drone that he was, hopefully gaining the respect of his siblings, some inclusion, but he was kept out of the holy trinity, as always. He kept his head down and occasion acted out, but nothing that would warrant another daggering. No, he needed to bide his time to construct a weapon that would subdue his brother.

Funnily enough, the first task he had his witches do was to make a Dark Object filled with his suffering, a means to show his brothers how badly they've treated him. It was a simple rock, but oh so much more. Once he was certain his witches were ready for more, he taught them everything he knew and made sure they worked round the clock as they also tried to figure out a way to have a weapon against Niklaus.

He feared he was going to be daggered after the glorious mass murder at St. Anne's Church where Kol used a Dark Object to kill Dowager Fauline so he could gain access to her home. Presumably, she was in possession of a diamond that could help Kol and his witches construct that weapon - now a dagger - a lot faster and make it a lot more powerful. They got caught, obviously, and Klaus had his witches spell the cottage to lock up Kol's witches.

And there wasn't a dagger for him. Citing that it was nearly Christmas, Elijah and Niklaus told him it was an early Christmas present; to allow him to walk among the living. Kol, believing every word they said, loved Christmas and hoped that the spirit of forgiveness would stay around a bit longer.

At their annual Christmas party, Kol told Rebekah about his plans against his brother, despite their supposed peace treaty, and later that evening, he regretted that decision. The always ever so loyal Rebekah betrayed him and Kol found himself daggered yet again. This time in front of a party full of witnesses.

So much rage and anger. It only seemed to grow over the years. It broke Bella's heart to know Kol had suffered so much at the hands of his family, that they rejected him time and again. That they never took him seriously, that he was always looking in from the outside.

The rage and anger reminded her of her own, but then magnified by the vampire senses and magnified by years and years of being treated like shit.

And then, she heard her own voice, and Kol's anger and rage quieted down, listening intently to the words spoken to him. How her voice and her words warmed his soul and how much he wanted to be undaggered so he could meet her.

But Bella was still raging. If this experience had been the result of Kol's Dark Object - which it likely was seeing as Damon gave her a stone - he did the one thing to her that he hated himself; giving her a timeout. The thing he had spoken to 'Davina' about, something that had been two years in the making and she felt betrayed. Again.

When she finally snapped out of the hold the Dark Object had on her, she flung everyone away from her but Klaus as she sat up with a scowl on her face. Pulling Klaus down to her level, she snapped his neck and retrieved the dagger he kept on him at all times before using her gift to drive it through Kol's heart, causing him to collapse onto the floor.

"Uhoh," Damon said in a singsong voice. "Someone's in trouble…"

"Shut up," Bella growled. "Shut up! How long have I been out for?"

Damon shrugged.

"Damon!"

"What? You told me to shut up!" Damon retorted as he blinked at her. "Fine, you were out for a week."

"I was out for a week!" Bella was clearly annoyed as she started to pace around the room. "I was out for a fucking week?! How dare you do that to me!"

"Well, you were kinda difficult to reason with…" Damon shrugged.

"Oh, that's the solution to everything, isn't it? Snap necks, daggering, oh, and dark objects! Just use 'em whenever someone becomes too difficult!" She fumed. "I wasn't difficult to reason with, I have every right to feel what I'm feeling and for refusing their _help_ or _attentions_. You're all a bunch of stupid assholes!"

"Hey, they thought you were out of control, alright?"

"I am not!" Bella growled. "I'm fucking pissed off now. I didn't need to know what Kol's been through with the multiple daggerings, with the adjusting to new situations every time he woke up. I didn't need to be given a fucking time out!"

"Alright, potty mouth, go rinse your mouth with soap!"

"Fuck you, Damon."

Damon groaned as he shifted uncomfortably, moving his hands to his groin area as he was still up against the wall. "You really need to stop swearing because damn, I'm so turned on right now."

Bella dropped him to the floor in disgust. "Ew!" Seeing as it was just her, Damon, Klaus and Kol in the room at the moment, Bella went to her clothes and grabbed a clean pair - although she was certain someone had redressed her at least a couple of times during her week of Kol's life - before heading into the bathroom and locking herself in.

She had every right to be angry with the Mikaelsons and with the Ancestors. Every fucking right. However, she had the idea that even in her hotel room, she wasn't safe from the Ancestors despite Hades' gift and needed to fix this mess and disappear.

She only hoped Elijah hadn't gone to the Regent himself as that might have complicated things.

Oh, she wanted to go back to being normal. Look at things from the outside, but this was a mess that was related to her and she couldn't back down. Bella also needed to make sure Hades didn't have to intervene anymore. Just the sheer thought of having only one more chance to prove herself not to fuck up was anxiety inducing. Didn't Helios tell her that Psyche thought she was a good egg? What was up Hades' ass to think differently?

By the time she was done soaking in the bath, she could hear people shuffling around on the other side of the door. She figured that Klaus wouldn't stay down that long, and hell was going to be paid if he'd undaggered Kol. Bella got dressed and pulled her damp hair back into a ponytail before leaving the room. Myriam had returned and Klaus was looking severely annoyed, but at least Kol was still daggered, now resting comfortably on the bed in the space she had just vacated. "Sup?"

"You better explain yourself," Klaus shot at her. "Daggering my brother?"

"Oh, so now it's an issue?" Bella retorted, raising an eyebrow before moving to the mini fridge in the hotel room to find herself something to snack on. "You haven't had any problems with him daggered in the past."

"That's irrelevant!" Klaus huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

Bella settled for a chocolate bar and turned to face him. "The way I see it, you daggered him as soon as he became a handful. Even chose that kid over him, your own flesh and blood. Now, I daggered him out of retaliation for having spent the last two years thinking of ways to neutralize me. He knows what it's like, he should have known better. I daggered him because he compelled Damon to give me that Dark Object. I daggered him because I really don't want to deal with him right now because I have other things to think about." Sitting down next to Kol on the bed, she gently poked his cheek. "And seeing that I know he hears everything, he'll agree that this is the right thing to do. Eye for an eye and all that."

"You're such a Mikaelson," Myriam laughed.

"He doesn't like me very much right now," Bella said as she pushed Kol's hair out of his face. "Already thinking of ways to get even with me, but let me tell you something, we're far from being even. Despite your shitty relationship with Klaus in the past, it doesn't make up for the fact you rejected me and broke my heart by not waiting for me. So, suck it up, cupcake. You're mine now."

Klaus sucked in a breath as he uncomfortably balanced on his feet. "Love, if you wish for Kol to remain daggered, I'd appreciate it if he'd come home with me, in his coffin."

"The hell he is," Bella retorted angrily. "He doesn't like the coffin and I'm not that cruel. He's going to stay in this bed for as long as I see fit. Nice and comfortable."

"What about house keeping?"

Rolling her eyes at the hybrid, she got off the bed, grabbed the 'do not disturb' sign and hung it outside the door. "Fixed. What else?"

"Why won't you come back and stay with us at the compound?"

"It's not safe," Bella replied as she took a bite off her chocolate bar. "For any of us but I don't want you to stay here either. Kol stays. You go," she continued before realizing something. "Please tell me you haven't gone to the Regent."

"Elijah paid her a visit and it was all courteous," Klaus replied as he watched Bella munch on her chocolate. "Perhaps you should have some proper food, love."

"Later," she replied. "Courteous, you say? Are you sure they haven't done anything else? Like… used more spells but not the one that tells you to hate me?"

"We wouldn't know, love, Myriam still carries around that coin and I seem to be left alone," Klaus replied truthfully. "Whenever someone came to watch over you, we made sure they'd touch your arm or hand before being left alone with you. Hopefully to cleanse them of new things."

Bella hummed as she made her way over to Damon. "Do you dislike me?"

"No, I like you very much. Very grateful you didn't snap my neck after you woke up."

"Feeling extra hungry lately?"

"Yes. And Kol's been worse. Rebekah and Elijah have resorted to blood bags but they're running out."

"As it happens, the hospitals and blood banks in New Orleans had to destroy the entire lot for all the batches were infected with something," Myriam offered worriedly.

"What about the other vampires in town?"

"You don't think that the Ancestors would play with the lives of innocent humans or their own witches, do you?" Klaus said shocked. "Deliberately have vampires draw attention to themselves?"

"Chaos, mayhem. Of course. They want you to keep busy to control your vampires so you're not with me," Bella ruffled Damon's hair and saw the black halo around his head disappear before she hopped back onto the bed with Kol, his desiccated body bouncing on the mattress. Sighing, she settled against the headrest and felt an uneasiness creep over her. "This room used to be safe, but I have a feeling it's no longer that way due to whatever the Ancestors have been doing. Go home, take Damon with you. Kol's safe with me."

"I'm not going anywhere without my brother," Klaus pointed out.

"Yeah and I'm not leaving you," Damon added defiantly.

Bella looked at Damon, Klaus and eventually settled on Myriam, who now also had her arms crossed over each other. Bella knew she was trying to fight a losing battle. "Fine. You guys stay here. I'm heading out."

"Good, where we going?" Damon rose to his feet as Bella got off the bed.

"Damon."

"Bella," he replied in the same tone of voice she'd used. "I was obviously brought here for a reason and if that reason is to die with you, so be it. I'm going where you're going and no turning me into an animal shenanigans; I'll shut up and be the muscle."

"I don't need a babysitter."

"Yes you do. You've always have and you always will, so, let's go sweet cheeks," Damon winked at her.

Bella scowled and looked at Kol's dessicated body on the bed. A feeling of regret and guilt washed over her and she just couldn't leave him like this. Kol hated to be daggered and she had promised she'd never allow him to be daggered ever again. On the other hand, he deserved it for betraying her, not once, but twice. Then again, she couldn't blame him for the betrayal and she feared that if she was going to hold on to that anger, it would only grow and grow until it spiralled out of control.

Just like it had. She could still feel it bubble underneath her skin, her own, but also his, as the memories put in that Dark Object were still fresh in the back of her mind. She had to control her anger, because she could damage so many people with it - she had to find a way to deal with it, later. For now, she just had to ignore it.

Climbing back onto the bed, she cupped Kol's chin. "Listen to me," she said sternly. "I am sorry for daggering you and I will remove it, but don't think for one second that it means there's nothing wrong between us. We're broken and I don't even know if I want it fixed yet. Got it?" When she felt something positive return from him, Bella let out a breath. "Again, I am so sorry I broke my word about the dagger. It won't happen again."

Pulling the dagger out of Kol's body was harder than she thought. Granted, she had used her powers to get it inside in the first place, but it had pierced his sternum and it felt like it had gotten stuck. She didn't want to hurt him as she tugged on it.

"Allow me," Klaus offered as he stood next to the bed.

"No," Bella replied as she imagined the dagger easing out of Kol's chest before it actually did that. Grabbing it after it had gotten free, she put it in her bag and headed out the door with Damon, carrying the bag with her.


	23. Chapter 23

"You're not giving Klaus the dagger?" Damon said surprised.

"I'll give it to Kol when he earned it," she replied with a shrug. The further she was from the hotel room, the calmer she felt and, as she stood outside, she cursed loudly. "Those freaking witches know where I was the entire time and spelled the freaking room."

"Time to move?" Damon laughed. "Seriously, now you're back, you should go and live with them in their compound."

"Hell no," Bella shook her head. "Not until this is over and not until I've earned my place back. Despite everything, I did leave for two years and it hurt them. I'll just have to move hotels."

"Bella…"

"Damon," she replied as she tried to ignore them being looked at. At least that hadn't changed in the last week. "Maybe everything that happened was a sign or something. Kol and I moved way too fast - he's been with Davina longer than he has been with me! And sure, it felt good, great, even, but what if I was only drawn to him because of his extensive knowledge of things and everything else was just a result of excitement and hormones?"

"That's a load of crap and you know it, Bella," Damon chided her. "You love being with Kol and travel around. You love the Mikaelsons and consider them family, as they do you."

She stopped walking and turned around to face him. "I do. I care for all of them, deeply. Well, maybe Elijah can go to hell, but yeah, I care for them deeply. And what happens when I care deeply? I can get so scarily angry that I lose control over myself. Last week I was _this_ close to kill someone in order for the Ancestors to stop what they're doing."

"That's only natural."

"Yeah, it is. But I am too young to spend the rest of eternity not on Earth. I have one more chance, Damon. If I go out of line again because I'm unable to control myself, then it's no more Bella. If this means I'll have to surround myself with people I don't care this much about, then so be it. The Mikaelsons will move on without me, they've already proven that they can. Especially Kol," she sighed as she continued to walk towards the best pastry shop that she knew of. "It's better to leave them now than to be ripped out of their lives because I fucked up again."

"I thought Hades taught you control?"

"Yes, he did."

"Then you have nothing to worry about, Bella."

Bella pushed the door to the shop open. "Easy for you to say," she muttered before ordering some pastries and then headed to the liquor store where she bought her favourite bottle of wine and the next stop was a chocolaterie to get some nice chocolates. She bought a beautiful basket from the market and put her gifts in there before she continued her way to the regent.

"All I'm saying is they're big boys and girls and if they didn't want you back into their lives, they wouldn't have gone as far as they have in the last week," Damon was puzzled as to why Bella bought all these goodies and didn't taste some herself. He seriously thought she would go on a food binge after not having had anything to eat for the last week and he'd been wrong. "Shouldn't you have like a sandwich?"

"I'm not hungry."

"But-"

"I'll be fine, now what was that what you said back at the hotel? You'd shut up," she countered before picking up the pace. "The sooner this is over, the sooner you can go back to Mystic Falls."

"What if I don't want to go back?"

"And leave Stefan?"

"Yeah well, I might stay here. I've always liked New Orleans," Damon mused as he put his hands in his pockets. "Did I ever tell you about Charlotte?"

"You're still talking." She hopped onto a train cart and Damon followed her. Through her initial observations she had found the home of the Regent somewhere in the Garden District; which made sense as Josephine LaRue was originally a Garden District witch and Elder of that coven. She had a pretty snazzy house, too.

Josephine LaRue knew Bella was coming. That was the sole purpose of Bella not turning invisible once she stepped outside the hotel. Bella made sure she didn't do anything out of anger or malice, which was easier once she was away from the hotel room; it was freaking spelled and it sucked; she had liked that hotel room. Bella was going to approach this as if she was going to make an acquaintance with a new neighbor. And then demand her to back the fuck off.

Damon followed her silently as they got off the cart, and after a few minutes, they arrived at the house. She wasn't surprised by the gaggle of witches in the yard, it was likely there were a couple of them inside as well; Bella was still perceived as a threat. "No vampires allowed."

"Good, then you won't mind him because he's my uncle."

"He's a vampire."

"Or, I could turn him into a big, cuddly St. Bernard if you wish. He's with me," Bella said determined as she pulled Damon with her towards the door. They were reluctantly shown to the library, where the regent was waiting for them, nervously. Damon stayed near the door as Bella continued to walk in. "Madame LaRue, such an honor to finally meet you," Bella smiled at her as she held out her basket filled with goodies. "This is for you."

This gesture seemed to surprise the woman as she reluctantly took it and set it aside, likely to inspect its contents on poison later. The woman pointed to an empty chair. "Please, sit," she eventually said and Bella obeyed. "What can I do for you, Ms. Swan?"

"Oh, you know the answer to that," she replied with a smile. "But I didn't come here for just that, I'm here to ease your worries and your fears. To offer my condolences because you've lost a very powerful witch recently."

"I'm not afraid," the woman huffed.

"Of course not," Bella replied calmly. "Just like the Ancestors aren't afraid. I'm being watched all day, every step I do gets documented. You've spelled my family against me and now that you know where I've been hiding, you've been spelling my room. And I completely understand why you did all that."

This baffled the old witch.

"When I crossed the bridge over the lake two years ago, I wasn't in control over my powers and I think that event must have scared you and your Ancestors deeply. If I could do that to regular spirits, then I could certainly take out the Ancestors and remove a large portion of the power of the New Orleans witches, am I correct?" When the witch remained quiet, Bella continued. "You're afraid with my presence here, the balance of power will be disrupted, or tilted in favor of the vampires or whomever I pledge my allegiance to. So in order to try to get me out of New Orleans, you've decided to spell my family to work against me. Have your witch Davina dig her claws deep into my now ex-boyfriend and just make the overall experience of being in New Orleans be as much of a pain as possible for me so I'd leave."

"I'm not denying that, no."

"The first thing I did after I was released from my punishment for sending so many ghosts to Hades was to remove the power surge that the werewolves were having. Hadn't it been for me, and the Mikaelsons, the supernatural community of New Orleans would now be under werewolf law. By doing this, I preserved your precious balance and yet, that wasn't good enough."

"You did it to save Niklaus Mikaelson, to restore his power."

"So he could fight the werewolves," Bella pointed out. "I don't fight. To be honest with you, when I crossed all of those spirits over to the realm of Hades, it freaked me out. I had him dial that ability way down because I want to experience this city the way it's supposed to be experienced, and not to be overwhelmed by dead people. I know I hold more power than any of you and, yes, I could mean the end of Ancestral magic. You've certainly given me more than enough reason to do so. But I won't. Because that's not who I am. All I ask is that you leave me and my family alone. Remove the spells and the influences so we can all go back to living our lives."

"And what will we get in return?"

"A not-pissed off Demi-Goddess whom you might need to ask a favor of in the future when something so bad comes to New Orleans you can't fix on your own," Bella replied swiftly, half shrugging. "I don't want to be the big bad. The new threat in town. I just want to live. The Mikaelsons came back to New Orleans to live their lives. They have their own businesses, they're working, doing good for the community. You and the Ancestors are hampering them in their daily routines and you're stopping me from living my life with my family. Again, if you don't accept my proposal, I will have to end this myself and that would mean you and your witches won't have access to Ancestral Magic anymore."

"Your proposal is absurd," Madame LaRue said angrily. "You'd still be here."

"Yes, and as I said, I'd owe you a favor." Bella countered. "How about this? You and the Ancestors drop everything you're doing right now to disrupt me and my family and allow us to live our lives in peace. The moment I step out of line, you can do whatever you want. However, should a wolf or a witch come after my family, I will protect them and that does not count towards this deal because after all, we're all still part human and there's laws that allow self defense. Give me time to prove we're not a threat. That I'm not a threat. Allow us to remain having a dialogue about this and not do things out of precaution or out of fear."

"What of Kol Mikaelson? He still needs to be punished for killing Davina Claire."

"Her death is on you," Bella countered again. "You had her insert herself into the family and manipulate them from the inside, you should have seen it coming that she'd end up getting herself killed. You can't blame Kol for wanting revenge for what she's done; ruining the relationship between two people who were madly in love with each other without hurting anyone. Destroying a happiness for him that he hadn't known in a very long time."

"Even if Bella hadn't returned, Davina would have ended up dead for it," Damon pointed out. "You decided to poke the proverbial bear. If not for Kol, it would have been Klaus because you had a damn hard time to keep him under your spell. Believe me, I've been dealing with the Mikaelsons for a very long time and while they're not my bestest friends, I do appreciate how the Mikaelsons protect each other; family above all, no hesitation."

"And you are?"

"Damon Salvatore," he replied. "Bella's great great great uncle or something. My half-brother started the line where she's descendant of, which is still kinda creepy because I wanted to get into her pants."

Bella wanted to stay respectful in this house, as a woman as old and gifted as the Regent would demand it and deserved it, and there he went, throwing that all out of the window. "Damon!"

Josephine smiled then. "That's alright, Ms. Swan, I appreciate that at least one of you doesn't pretend to be someone else."

"Ha!"

Bella narrowed her eyes on the woman. "Who says I was pretending? I'm merely treating you with the respect you deserve as a woman in your position, as I was taught to do by my parents. I doubt you would have wanted to speak with me if I walked in in anger, disrespecting you and your witches but I'm not. Because I do have a brain and common sense, something he severely lacks."

"Hey!" Damon said hurt. "You know I have a problem with authority figures."

Josephine LaRue sighed. "Very well, I shall take your proposal under consideration and discuss it with the Ancestors."

"No," Bella said as she got to her feet. "You end this now. By the time I get back to the hotel, I want all the spells and everything related to that lifted. If not, I will come back and I won't be as respectful as I am now."

"Very well," the woman said, defeated. Likely because she was scared, still. Bella didn't care. Enough was enough. "Does your proposal still stand then?"

"It does. I always keep my word if I can help it, just like the Mikaelsons, and just like Damon here."

"Then I shall start lifting the spells immediately. Thank you for stopping by, Ms. Swan, Mr. Salvatore. It has been… enlightening."

The first thing she noticed as they walked down the street was that everybody had stopped looking at her and Bella felt so relieved. She took a deep breath and smiled at Damon. "Elijah's so going to be pissed that I did something he couldn't."

"Still early days, Bella," Damon chuckled and shook his head. "So, what's next?"

The need to move to another hotel was gone now that she seemingly resolved the issue with the Regent and Ancestors. However, she knew that if she wanted to get a handle back on her own life and create a little distance between her and the Mikaelsons, Kol in particular, she'd have to have an apartment or a privately owned home much like the guest house on the Salvatore property in Mystic Falls. Hotels were public property and vampires wouldn't need invitations to walk in.

Bella hadn't spent her invisible time to just watch the comings of goings of everyone involved in this mess; she had also taken the opportunity to look at some realtor listings for apartments for rent. Granted, this would make it a little harder for her to make her home fully vampire proof because she wouldn't actually own her little thing, but there were ways around that, wouldn't there? She had enough in her bank account still to make a small deposit on something to buy, a mortgage, and maybe she could go back to waitressing to pay for the rest.

She had seen a few in her price range.

"I'm going to grab a bite to eat, why won't you go back to the hotel and tell everyone what happened?" Bella suggested as they hopped on the street car. "I'll follow you in a bit."

"Are you sure? I could come with you?"

Bella let out a breath and shook her head. "Bella needs her alone time for just a little bit, Damon. She hasn't been able to be alone for quite some time and she'll be fine."

"Okay," Damon shrugged. "Bring me back a beignet."

"Do find yourself some vervain before you go back? I don't want them to take advantage out of you."

"Good idea, I'll stop by a witch shop."

"There's a teashop in the Seamen's Quarter near the old church run by a girl named Ann. Just go there, she's less likely to show you the door." Bella watched as Damon walked off and waited for a good ten minutes before she headed on her own journey. She bought herself the biggest sandwich she could find and munched on it as she headed to the realtor's office through a back alley.

She nearly dropped her sandwich when she was hit in the head by something and blinked when she saw a large brown envelope on the ground behind her with her name on it. Curious, she picked up the envelope and walked to the nearest bench, just outside the alley, to put her sandwich down on and investigate the contents of the envelope.

 _My dearest Bella,_

 _My sincere apologies for what Hades has put you through, tearing you away from your friends like that for nearly two whole years? I hope you don't mind, but I took a peek into your life like I usually do, have done in the past, and it's a mess. That's on Hades. Not on you._

 _Our Olympian cousins are jerks and uptight. Don't worry, I managed to get you out of the 'one more fuck up' kinda deal he had with you; you've only just recently started to get some control and he helped you to get rid of the ones that were bugging you so much. You deserve a life, Bella._

 _Now, I wouldn't be your magical grandfather if I didn't have something up my sleeve. I noticed you wanted some private space from your vampire friends like in Mystic Falls. If I'm wrong, then let this be me telling you that you need some space from your vampire friends._

 _In this envelope there are the keys to an apartment I purchased for you in your name. You own it and therefor, no vampire can cross your threshold unless you want them to. I've been told it's quite a cute little place above a shop which you can access through a door next to it. Get up the stairs and you'll be in the living area and kitchen. There's a spiral stairs leading to the next floor where the bedroom and bathroom is. I'm fairly certain you're going to like it._

 _Call your mother. She hasn't heard from you in years. Now, granted, you couldn't help the last two years, but she misses you. Invite her over to New Orleans, perhaps?_

 _I'll be out of this plane of existence for a bit but I'll call you when I get back._

 _I love you._

 _Helios._

"God damnit, this is too much," she muttered with a smile on her face. At least it would save her the hassle of figuring things out for an apartment, but it was really too much. But maybe Helios was right in needing to sincerely apologize for what she'd been through. There was a deed to the apartment in her name, with the keys and she could feel the color drain from her face. How could she get some distance from the Mikaelsons when the new apartment was across the street from their Compound? They could easily leap out the window and into her apartment or look into her apartment from the room that looked out over it.

She then realized that this could also be quite devious on her part; they couldn't enter the house. Bella could tease Kol mercilessly if his room was indeed looking right into hers. Bella let out a snort as she put the important papers into her bag and checked to see if all the important things to her, such as her laptop, were inside before making the decision not to go to the hotel but straight to her new home. Fuck all those vampires.

Turning invisible, she went to her new apartment and finished her sandwich before she opened the door and climbed the stairs. She found the place fully furnished and it looked a lot like the wood paneling she had at the guest house in Mystic Falls. Bella giggled madly as she explored the house, the kitchen was amazing and so was the upstairs bedroom and bathroom. It had a big bathtub where she could just float around in.

Her grandfather H always spoiled her rotten and made her feel like a princess but now he had really outdone himself. Bella was now a real life princess in her own little castle. Feeling all giddy, she left her bag on the couch and only pocketed some money and her keys and went out to get some groceries. And fairy lights. The only thing the apartment was missing was a lot of fairy lights but that was easily fixed.

When she returned home a few hours later, her phone had exploded with messages and missed calls from Kol, Klaus and Myriam, asking her where she was and if she was alright and when she was coming back. Opening a bag of popcorn and throwing a handful into her mouth, she made a group chat and replied: _Damon can have the hotel room for as long as he wishes to stay in New Orleans. I'm good. X_

Bella opened her laptop and started to play some music the loudest her laptop could go at without it being too obnoxious for her own ears and started to put away the things she bought. She felt a sense of freedom she hadn't felt for a very long time, she had nothing to worry about, nothing to think about, just to be. And party. Oh boy, was she going to party, but likely first just to pass out for the night.

It had been a long day. It had been a long week even though she'd spent most of it unconscious. It still infuriated her she'd been rendered unconscious by the people she trusted and she could feel that anger bubble inside of her. She needed to find a way to deal with that, something other than having great sex with Kol. If she'd do that, she'd betray herself and signal to him that it's alright to look at other girls and have sex with them and… oh, she felt disgusted then. Davina and Kol had had sex. Kol's mouth had been on Davina's. They had kissed. They-

Bella shuddered as she took her popcorn and a bottle of beer with her to the bathroom. Thinking of how Kol would have expertly disrobed Davina was the stuff of nightmares. Maybe Bella could use this experience in one of her stories, to try to make sense of it all. In all honesty, Bella didn't feel like it should affect her this much. She'd been with Kol for just over six months before she fucked up and had to join Hades.

Granted, their relationship had been intense in every sense, but still, she felt that it shouldn't affect her this much. It hurt. Kol's whimsical nature and following his dick hurt, even though she should have anticipated that. Vampires sucked even if she believed they had changed for the better.

Now that the whole ordeal with the Ancestors was over and her family rid of all the spells that were thrown at them, Bella could relax. She had her own place now and nobody could disturb her. She didn't have to be strong. She didn't quite like the beer, but downed it on one go anyway before getting into the bath tub filled with water and an artisan orange bath bomb smelling like tangerines, bergamot and something other kind of citrussy. It smelled amazing and she should have felt energized by it, but instead she felt tired and so incredibly sad.

She was allowed one pity party, right?

~o.O.o~

"This is unacceptable," Kol fumed as he paced across the courtyard. After Bella's text, they all realized she wasn't coming back and there was no telling where she was. She could have gone back to Mystic Falls or been taken by Hades. "She goes through all this trouble to help us and herself and then disappears?"

Klaus just watched his brother pace around like a maniac while Klaus enjoyed the peace and quiet as he nursed a glass of bourbon. For the first time in a very long time, home felt like home again and he wasn't allowing anything, not even his ranting brother, to spoil that. The werewolves were taken care of. The Ancestors off their backs. Life was good.

"What about me, Nik? What am I going to do now? I thought she'd come back to me."

"You really haven't paid attention to everything, have you, dear brother?" Rebekah said as she took a seat on the sofa and joined Nik in having a glass of alcohol. "The girl is hurt and she needs some time."

"She's hurt? I understand that she feels that way because of Davina, but it wasn't as if I could do anything about it!"

"Rebekah," Klaus interrupted her before she could explain what was happening. "He needs to figure it out on his own. We can't very well keep telling him what to do and what to think. It's not what she'd want."

"It would be a lot easier if she hadn't skipped town," Rebekah muttered.

"Who says she did? For all we know she's staying in New Orleans. With her ability to change into someone else or even turn invisible, we'd never know," Klaus took a sip of his glass. "Like you said, she needs some time. She'll send us a message when she's good and ready."

"We'll need some code word or something to prove that we are who we say we are," Rebekah said after a moment of silence, causing both brothers to look at her. "She can be whomever she wants to be, what if she'll pose as one of us? As Myriam? Just to keep an eye on us?"

"I doubt she'll do that and if she does wants to keep an eye on us, she'll be invisible," Klaus mused. "Mainly because if she's Myriam, I'll find out the moment she and I are alone."

"Or, she could be posing as one of us right now!" Rebekah said shocked. "Oh, this is going to be a nightmare. I'd rather know where she is than to live in uncertainty."

"Are we still talking about this girl?" Elijah sighed tiredly as he walked onto the courtyard. "We're home. It's time to look forward."

Rebekah narrowed her eyes on her brother. "This girl is called Bella and she's one of us, Elijah. I thought the spell was lifted?"

"It has," Elijah replied, pouring himself a drink before rolling his eyes at his youngest brother, who was still pacing around. "For God's Sake, Kol, find something better to do than to damage the floor tiles."

"Or what? You'll dagger me?"

Reminded of his brother's need for attention, Klaus sighed as he took another sip of his drink. "Elijah's never liked Bella, so there's no change there," he said as he got to his feet. "Come on, Kol, let's have some fun with the locals."

Elijah's eyes grew wide. "Brothers, I implore you, do not kill the locals!"

"Not to worry, brother," Klaus replied playfully. "If and when we decide to eat our way through an apartment complex, you'll be the first to know."

~o.O.o~

One of the best things about New Orleans, or the state of Louisiana in general, was that the temperatures were nice enough for her to have her window open at all times or the front balcony with the French doors open wide without it causing her home to get really cold.

She hadn't mustered the confidence just yet to sit on her balcony in sight of the Mikaelsons, but once she would have, she was definitely sit on that balcony and read a book while sipping on a glass of wine. That just seemed pretty damn epic to her. Apart from the occasional fighting she heard coming from the room of the Mikaelsons across the street. At some point during the middle of the night when she was asleep and the roads not that busy, she could feel the earth tremble because someone got smashed into a wall. Bella tried not to worry.

No, in the last three weeks since she'd dealt with the Ancestors, Bella had truly been hiding from her family by going out the door looking like someone she'd seen on the streets and with that, she could live a pretty undisturbed life. After spending a week in the hotel, Damon had gone back to Mystic Falls to help his brother. Bella caught up with her stories, left messages on her website about her life in New Orleans - granted, she left out the part where she lived just in case. She knew Myriam frequented the website and no doubt she'd relay whatever bit of information she could scrape up with the rest of the family and caught up on movies and TV shows. Books. Oh, definitely the books.

New Orleans had so many cute and very cool book shops, like one in the French Quarter; it specialized in rare, antique and out of print books and she felt all nerdy when she found a book on torture. The book was quite explicit, but it was going to help with the new story she was writing.

There was also a shop like that for kitchen books. Bella had rediscovered her love for cooking and had bought a cooking book or two to try out some of the local cuisine herself, but found she still needed a lot of improvement cooking wise, local cuisine was best tasted from a local chef or person, not from someone trying to copy them.

Life. Live. And she was loving it.

However, no matter how much she had gotten her life back on track over the last few weeks, she missed being around the Mikaelsons. Around Kol. Myriam. Now she didn't have to fear to be taken away from them if she'd screw up royally again, she felt a little safer to rebuild her social life. She'd hold herself accountable and she'd punish herself, but at least she'd be able to stick around on Earth. Bella wondered what Helios had to give up himself to get this deal going and she feared that he gave up his own existence on Earth so she could be free.

She didn't have issues with Klaus and Myriam. Their friendship wasn't in any danger because it had always been there - and Bella was grateful for the space they were giving her.

But she was so torn about Kol. He was her first real boyfriend. Her first real relationship. Sure, there had been Moritz, but that was high school stuff. Kol… so wasn't high school. It had been an intense six months and it felt like they'd been together for longer. They did so much together, so many experiences, and she missed him. She was aware of his attention span and yes, she did leave and opened the door for Davina and the witches to manipulate him and the rest of his family.

Bella shouldn't fault him for falling for Davina. Or at least be mildly interested in her to start with. He had no way of knowing when Bella would return - if she'd return. Bella knew this and she had taken her revenge by briefly daggering Kol and not talking to him for a few weeks. But he had still used a Dark Object on her to 'subdue' her. Asshole.

Maybe it was time to start mending what they had, to reach out to him. To talk things over and hopefully have him live with her at her apartment.

She smiled at that, then. While she had loved being with all the Mikaelsons in one place, it was simply too crowded, too much. Too… unhealthy, in a way. The months she and Kol spent travelling together had been amazing and Kol had been so likeable - she felt that with them staying with the rest of his family he was getting undermined a lot and that wasn't fair.

While it was easy to just go across the street and talk to Kol, she wasn't sure if she was quite ready for that yet, either. What if he didn't feel the same anymore? What if the space that Klaus and Myriam were giving her was something other than space? What if she wasn't good enough anymore? But then again, she wouldn't have anything to worry about because Klaus had always been in her corner. Bella wasn't too sure about Myriam and that was going to be a problem because Bella had been a shitty friend.

She really needed to think about all of this some more.


	24. Chapter 24

**CeilingCat:** Myr?

 **TrashPanda:** Bella! 3

 **CeilingCat:** Want to go for lunch? Just us two?

Bella had thought about it, long and hard, and she figured that if she needed to fix things, the best way was to start with Myriam. It's where it all started in the first place. It was Myriam who had kept an eye on Bella from a distance the moment they realized that she was something special and through Myriam, Bella got to know the Mikaelsons.

 **TrashPanda:** I can't.

Myriam took way too long to answer and Bella's heart sank. She had fucked up, hadn't she?

 **CeilingCat:** Dinner, then?

 **TrashPanda:** Sure. Come to dinner at the compound tonight, I'm sure everyone will love to see you! 3

No, no, no. Bella wasn't ready for that! She had not prepared herself for this outcome.

 **TrashPanda:** Either come to the compound tonight - we have a very good French chef at the moment - or, we'll come over to your place. Yes, we know you've been our neighbor for quite a while now ;-) You can fool the eyes, but not the nose!

Bella's jaw nearly dropped to the floor. She should have known, she should have, but… damnit.

 **CeilingCat:** What time?

 **TrashPanda:** Well, you could go over there now, I don't care. I'm at work so I'll see you tonight.

This was entrapment. This wasn't fair. She had thought she'd go to lunch or dinner with Myriam and talk with her about stuff. Make sure that the friendship was still there and now this?

 **CeilingCat:** How about I come to your work for coffee?

 **TrashPanda:** Can't do that, Bella. See you tonight! 3

Bella tried not to freak out for the rest of the day as she kept pacing back and forth in her apartment, thinking of scenarios and how that would play out and what would happen if something went wrong. Maybe Myriam didn't want to be her friend anymore and Myriam would need the rest of the family to back her up. Or be present.

Was Myriam scared of her now?

Was Bella going to be able to deal with everyone at once?

Since when had Bella turned into such a chicken?

Well, she could answer that last question; despite the fact that the witches had dropped all of their spells and influencing on the family, Bella wasn't sure what she was going to walk into. It was almost as if the whole experience had given Bella social anxiety and that was wrong. But it was still a nagging feeling in the back of her mind. What if. What if they resented her? What if they weren't happy? What if, what if, what if.

What if they were alright but they didn't want her around anymore?

By the time it was dinner time, Bella had polished off half a bottle of wine for liquid courage, but sadly, she didn't feel any different. Sighing, she grabbed her keys and her phone and headed across the street. Much to her surprise, she found the place deserted. It had an eerie feeling about it too; all the lights were out and the only illumination the courtyard received was from the light outside.

This was a clear message to her, wasn't it? They didn't want her anymore. Sighing heavily, she turned around and started to walk out of there, only to be stopped by Elijah. Of all people, it had to be Elijah. "Yeah, don't worry, Elijah," she sighed as she looked up at him. "I'll go."

Elijah smiled at that. "Rejection hurts, doesn't it?"

She narrowed her eyes on him, remembering all the times Kol tried to get his brother's attention in the past and always being rejected. "You're one to talk."

He gestured around them. "This is what my siblings have been experiencing in the last couple of weeks after you successfully bargained with the Regent. Now, I've seen them all at their worst before, but not for this long and certainly not this intense. This was Ms. Jenkins' idea."

"I get it. I'll leave."

"You don't 'get it', at all, Ms. Swan, and leaving is certainly not the answer. Allow me to escort you to the bar where they've all gathered for dinner. Ms. Jenkins also implied you'd feel more comfortable with other people around," he stepped aside and motioned with his hand for her to follow him.

Reluctantly, Bella followed him. Elijah wasn't her biggest fan, she knew this. This was a fact. Even before all of the meddling of the witches, Elijah didn't like her very much. Kol had brushed it off as Bella being too powerful and having the potential to be worse than Klaus and Kol combined and that she shouldn't listen to Elijah.

However, he was the eldest of the Mikaelsons. He knew his siblings well. Elijah had a good head on his shoulders and maybe he was right about Bella; and she was the one in denial. She did have the potential to be incredibly dangerous and do some serious damage. It was one of the reasons why she had thought about leaving New Orleans and this family behind; she didn't want them to get hurt because of her. Not again.

And on the way to the bar where his siblings were, Elijah validated every single fear that she had about this dinner, every ounce of guilt she felt, seemed to be weighing even heavier by the time they were close and Bella fought the instinct to shut Elijah up. Despite how correct he was, his words hurt and she wanted it to stop. "Why do you think I've been avoiding all of you?"

"You got yourself an apartment right across the street; I hardly call that avoiding."

"Helios bought it for me, it's not as if I had a hand in it!"

"You could have resold it and find some other place," Elijah said simply before he swung the door to Rousseau's open. "There you go. We're right at the back of this establishment," he added. "And if your first words to my family aren't 'I am sorry', you will be."

"You've made your point," she said softly, still resisting the urge to turn him into a cockroach or something. "Now stop before I will do something I might regret." While she knew Elijah was only rubbing salt in her wounds, she couldn't help but feel as if she had shrunk to the size of an ant. Had Elijah's presence at the compound been Myriam's idea as well?

"And risk the wrath of my siblings? Come now, Isabella, here I thought you wanted to try to fix things!" Elijah made his way through the crowd and joined his family for dinner.

Why had she left the silver dagger at the apartment?

"Elijah, what took you so long?" Klaus questioned his brother. "You said it was merely an errand you needed to run!"

"I happened upon Ms. Bella," Elijah replied as he unfolded a napkin and put it down in his lap. "It would have been rude of me to have her walk here by herself, wouldn't it?" He nodded towards Bella who had now followed him through the crowd and had made a beeline towards the bar. "I believe she was invited for dinner? How rude of her not to say hello first."

"Allow the girl to get some liquid courage before she faces us, brother," Klaus playfully replied; his voice the complete opposite of the look of worry and concern on his face as he watched her. "It's likely she only anticipated having to deal with Myriam before Myriam decided that it was best to pull off the proverbial band-aid and have her face us all at once." There was no doubt in his mind that his brother had likely made things worse in Bella's mind. It showed true courage on Bella's behalf that she still came, and he couldn't be more proud of her.

Bella had tried to get the attention of the female bartender for a while now, but she was either purposefully ignoring her, or too busy to notice her. That, or Bella had truly shrunk to the size of an ant and she had to start avoiding getting trampled. She didn't think she was _that_ short.

"You look like you could use a drink," a friendly voice spoke next to her. English accent but not familiar so it was likely safe to look up. When she did, she stared at the handsome young man with beautiful blue eyes and nodded. If he could get her a drink quicker, then yes. "What's your poison?"

"Whiskey or bourbon or vodka… anything, thanks," she smiled at him before looking back at the bartender, willing the woman to walk over to them.

A hand appeared in front of her, making her look at the hand and noticing that it came from the guy. "I'm Kaleb," he smiled at her. "What's your name?"

"Bella," she replied, not taking his hand. "I could really use that drink, Kaleb," she replied, a certain urgency in her voice.

"Alright, alright," he laughed and got the attention of the bartender.

The moment the shot of vodka appeared in front of Bella, she downed it and hoped that it would be refilled. She needed more. She could feel how Kaleb slipped an arm around her which made her look up at him and he winked, downing his own shot.

"How about we go some place quiet and talk about what's bothering you?"

Smoothe. Did that actually work on people? Bella didn't have a chance to respond because without blinking, Kol had pried the arm off of her and twisted it behind Kaleb's back. She could have sworn she heard something break. "Kol!"

"Getting a little handsy with the ladies, huh?" Kol bent Kaleb's arm even further, causing the boy to double over. "Buying her a drink?"

"Kol, stop," Bella put her hand on his arm, but all she got in return was Kol looking at her as if he was possessed - which he wasn't. There was no magical aura, there was nothing there. This truly was Kol and he was now dragging Kaleb towards the exit.

"Well, that's another witch down," Klaus commented from behind her.

She quickly looked over her shoulder before running after Kol. "No, no, no, no!" She followed him into the alley where he was smacking Kaleb against the wall, vamp face out. "Kol!"

"Stay out of this, Bella," he shot at her, not removing his eyes from the witch. "How dare he get to touch you while I haven't been able to touch you in weeks! YEARS!"

Oh, that was hot. It was so wrong but so hot. "Kol, he didn't attack me, or you, let him go."

"If anything, he attacked me," Kaleb replied before he received a blow to the face. "You wanker!"

"Go near my girl again and I swear, I will tear your skin off so slowly you will beg for death," Kol spat at the witch before throwing him out onto the street. Ignoring his siblings who had followed them onto the street, he pulled Bella towards him and then pushed her against the wall, gently, locking her in with his arms so she couldn't escape. He still had this delirious look on his face, but his vamp face was gone. "We have unfinished business, you and I. You daggered me."

"I told you I was sorry," she said breathlessly as she looked at him. Despite everything, she knew he wasn't going to hurt her. She wasn't scared. No, she was turned on and the whole experience was confusing. "And I am. For everything," Bella continued. "For leaving for so long, for the witches, for Davina, for daggering you and then not showing my face for weeks… I hurt you and betrayed your trust by doing what I said I wouldn't be doing and-"

"What are you doing?" Kol took a step closer to her, his voice kinder now.

Confused, she blinked at him. "I'm apologizing."

"For a lot more than you should."

"What?"

"The way I see it, we're even, you and I. I betrayed you by putting you under the influence of the Dark Object and you retaliated by daggering me. I had that coming. I am grateful it only lasted for less than an hour; I believe you scared yourself by doing that to me, isn't that enough?"

"This is disappointing," Elijah muttered.

"Shut up, brother," Rebekah hit him on the arm. "This is so much better than The Notebook!"

"I understand, Bella, I know why you did the things you did and how hard it must have been for you to do it and I don't feel you should apologize for that," Kol took another step closer to her, he could hear her heart beat so loud that it was causing the air to resonate slightly. "What you should apologize for is for living next door for weeks without as much as a 'hi'. I'd have gladly given you the space you required because I know that you hurt. Perhaps even more than I hurt."

"I deserve it, it's my own fault I wasn't here and-"

"No, this is on me," he smiled at her. "I should have listened to you when you said New Orleans wasn't going to be a good idea. What happened on the bridge is on those relatives of yours, not giving you the proper training before setting you off in the real world and I am glad that that has changed. I would have been fine waiting for you for an eternity but, what happened next was all on the Ancestors," he gently pushed a wayward strand of her hair out of her face. "Witches have a notorious history of being manipulative. We should have recognized the signs early on, especially when that spell failed to hold on Nik as it did. But we all ignored it and we should have known better that you never would have turned on us the way they made us believe. No matter how much you distaste Elijah and his wardrobe."

"I don't distaste Elijah. His wardrobe… yes," Bella replied with a small smile on her face. "He does have some valid points about why you shouldn't keep me around."

"Nonsense," Kol huffed as he looked over to his brother. "He's as narrow minded as the witches, why do you think they were able to keep on manipulating us? Elijah only wants what's best for the family in his mind, and he's so very wrong about you."

"This is preposterous," Elijah huffed as he shook his head. "If we're not going to have dinner as a family, I shall take my leave and find my own."

"For once I have to agree with Elijah, I'm hungry," Myriam piped up. "Let's go back inside and have dinner, we can talk some more while we have some good food."

Kol took another step closer to Bella, he was so close now, they were almost touching and stared her right in the eyes. He could hear her heart speed up again and Bella's pupils were dilated and it gave him hope, so much hope. "You go ahead and order for us too, Bella and I have some unfinished business, won't be a minute." After his siblings walked away, he spoke again. "You're still mine, Bella, and if you want me to be, I'm still yours."

"Don't you need time to get over-"

"No," he growled lowly. "Don't go there, my beautiful goddess. I had my revenge when I killed her. What she and I had wasn't real. You and me. We are real. I never stopped loving you. Never." He put his forehead against hers, still blocking her exits with both arms. "I always dismissed it as a form of mourning while that bitch had me under her spell but it wasn't. It was you, all along, trying to get through to me even while you weren't around," he took a deep breath. "I know you said we're broken and that you weren't sure yet if you wanted us to be fixed but Bella, I'll do anything to fix what's broken. I even destroyed the Dark Object that I- I should have never used it on you."

"But-"

"Stop thinking so much, Bella, get out of your head before you hurt yourself," he kissed the top of her head. "Please. Nothing is as bad as you think. Nothing is as broken as you believe it to be. Don't be scared - it'll be -"

While Bella believed this was too much like one of her fanfictions, there was a truth in what Kol was saying. He needed her, but she needed him just as bad. She grabbed the sides of his head and pulled him in for a desperate but passionate kiss that didn't last as long as she wanted to but eventually she needed air. Sighing happily, she looked up at him and saw that stupid goofy grin on his face that likely mirrored her own. "I only have one request."

"Anything," he said all giddy as he pulled her into his arms.

"For as long as we want to stay in New Orleans, you're going to stay with me. Not at the compound but with me."

"Done."

She softly brushed his lips with hers. "So, in how much trouble am I, really?"

Kol shrugged. "Well, you might be on Myriam's shit list for going dark these past weeks. If she did any bitching about you, it was about that. Now, I understand and all, and I believe Nik does too, to a certain degree, but she missed you like crazy, Bella."

"I've been a shitty friend."

"You have been a shitty friend," Kol agreed. "But you can fix that. Come, let's go eat."


	25. Chapter 25

Kol had protectively put his arm around her as they walked back to Rousseau's. He couldn't be happier about the turn around with Bella; he had honestly believed that she wouldn't want him anymore and it hadn't been the case. His magnificent goddess was back where she belonged; with him.

He did notice, though, as they made their way through the crowd, she was tensing up again at the sight of Niklaus whispering something in Myriam's ear. "Don't worry, darling," he said encouragingly. "Nik only told Myriam to behave."

"Oh yeah, that helped," Bella said sarcastically.

He let out a snort and shook his head. "You're a goddess; you could always bend them to your will as a last resort."

"No, don't be an idiot," she smiled at him. "That's an abuse of power and highly irresponsible."

"Sounds like fun to me."

When they got to the table, Bella could see their food had already been brought to the table. Why she was the only one with a cheeseburger was beyond her understanding, but she was going to figure that out soon enough. "Uhm… before I sit down, I want to apologize."

"That's alright, love," Klaus said as he pointed to her chair. "You needed some time to adjust. But do realize in this family, we help each other out. We can't help you if you push us away. Now sit. Eat."

"Just don't think we'll be letting you off the hook this easily next time," Rebekah added as she watched Bella sit down. "You still have a lot to learn about this family."

"Aw, Bekah, you're only nice to her because technically she's your boss," Kol teased his sister, causing his sister to scowl.

"Oh, about that. I uh… think it's sweet and generous, Klaus, but I think Rebekah should be the boss of the animal shelter. She seems to be enjoying her work immensely, and I think I'll only be intruding as I'd have no idea what to do."

"See? I don't need a supervisor," Rebekah smiled widely at her brother.

"Very well, what will you be doing then, Bella?" Klaus wondered as he watched her hesitantly taking a chip off of her plate and pop it into her mouth.

She blinked at the taste of the fry but chewed and swallowed it anyway. The cook must have mistaken the chili powder for paprika powder, which was fine. Nothing Bella couldn't handle. "Uh, I had some ideas, but they can wait. I think what's more important is we're all alright together as we were before. That we're comfortable again in each other's presence." She put another fry in her mouth and was surprised that the chili hadn't ruined the taste of the fries.

"But still, you could assist Rebekah-"

"Klaus, I appreciate it, but no. I've spent the last two years working my ass off without much to show for it other than ruined relationships and a healthy dose of anxiety," she said determined before she took a bite off of her burger and wishing she hadn't. She had regretted it immediately as her mouth was on fire. According to her taste buds - that were now shot - the beef patty was filled with peppers and hot as hell. No proper sauce other than Sriracha and oh god, her mouth was on fire.

Swallowing, she reached for her glass of water and took a few sips, only then remembering that water only antagonized the burning sensation. Looking around, everyone was eating their food, except for Myriam. The guilty party was looking away while she sipped on her glass of wine. "Game on," Bella muttered as she took another bite off of the cheeseburger and thought of how fun it would be if Myriam believed her wine had vervain in it.

Almost immediately, Myriam began choking on her drink, reaching for her throat as she gasped for air. Her eyes flashed up to the only capable party at the table, careful to keep her vampire visage from overtaking her face due to the public setting they were in. Growling low, she gratefully took Klaus' drink as he shoved it into her hands as he checked to see what was wrong. "Vervain," she managed to choke out.

Klaus took a sip of her wine and shrugged. "No vervain."

She glared at him, sipping his drink only to choke again, dropping it to the table. "Fuck-"

Bella, now red-faced because of that second bite of the burger, felt victorious and smirked as Myriam looked at her. "Is there a problem?"

"Yes," she answered, her voice raspy from the vervain she was suffering from. "You!"

"It's only fair, seeing as you gave me this burger," Bella shrugged and defiantly took another bite. "If I can do it, so can you," she said as she chewed on, her voice a pitch higher than it normally was.

Myriam was tempted to jump across the table to get the girl. "A little heat won't kill you. Vervain, on the other hand, would cause severe damage and can kill us and you know that," she argued, slight hurt hiding behind her eyes.

"You're not listening to Klaus," Bella pointed out as she quickly took another bite of the burger. Her face getting redder and redder and her sinuses were trying to clear themselves out. "He tastes no vervain, how do you explain that?"

"Bella's no witch," Kol was amused. "She's in your head, creating an illusion. It won't kill you, Myriam. You can stop now, Bella, so that she can enjoy her wine."

"Nope," Bella shook her head. "I can't enjoy my food; she can't enjoy her wine until I'm done." Tears were rolling down her cheeks now, but she was determined not to show Myriam that she wanted to give up.

Elijah had enough by this point, flagging down the passing waitress as he pulled the plate with the offending food away from Bella. "Bloody hell. Both of you drop it. I can't see you force yourself through her punishment any further. Waitress! Can you please bring another order for her without the peppers, please? And perhaps a pint of milk for the young lady?"

The blonde woman looked around the table for a moment before nodding. "Right away," she agreed before heading over to the bar to put the order in, having kept an eye on the group the entire time.

Bella pouted as she removed the illusion from Myriam's mind. Myriam reached for the bottle, and instead of refilling her glass, she started to drink it from the bottle.

"Sweetheart, you might have a drinking problem," Klaus said playfully.

"Screw you, Mr. Bourbon."

"Absolutely. Once dinner's over."

"Fuck you."

"That's the same, dear."

Myriam slammed her hand on the table and looked at Bella. "Don't you ever ruin good wine like that again, you hear me?"

"I didn't ruin anything. Your brain did," Bella eagerly took the glass of milk that the waitress was bringing over and downed it one go; loving the science behind drinking milk after eating something spicy. "I might have tricked it, though."

"That was so not fair."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"Good," Myriam said as she sat down again, now refilling her glass with the bottle she'd just drunk from. "Spa day tomorrow?"

"I hate the spa!" Bella whined. "I only go because you like it!"

Myriam shrugged. "What other plans do you have?"

Bella looked over to Kol, hoping he was going to help her bail out of going to the spa with Myriam. Surely they had better ways to spend the day?

"Bella's mine tomorrow," Kol replied. "And tonight, as well. And the days after and… maybe she has a free slot next week, Myriam," he said playfully, a wide grin on his face. "She and I have a lot of catching up to do. And also; I'll be packing some of my stuff tomorrow as I'll be moving out."

"You're not moving out," Klaus said flabbergasted.

"No, you're like a warhead ready to be detonated, you are not going to move out," Rebekah shook her head. "New Orleans wouldn't be safe with you on the loose."

"I'm not that bad!" Kol shot at his siblings. "Honestly!"

"Do I have to remind you that you killed Davina?" Rebekah told him. "Or what about those ten people in the Ninth Ward? If it hadn't been for Nik's constant supervision of you-"

"Davina had it coming for what she did to us, and those ten people were drug dealers, so what's your problem, sister?"

"I don't see a problem with you moving out, brother," Elijah spoke after his siblings shot daggers at Kol. He had a feeling that his youngest brother wasn't going to move far, anyway. "It'll free up Niklaus' time to spend with Myriam or his art, and it will save us the worry that we're leaving you unattended."

"He's not a little child," Bella muttered, taking a sip of the second glass of milk that the waitress brought over together with her new burger. "Stop treating him like one."

Klaus huffed. "And where will you be going, Kol?"

"Right across the street," he simply said. "Until we decide we've had enough of New Orleans for a while and went on another road trip."

Rebekah's jaw fell on the table. "Oh, you have lost your mind, haven't you?"

"No," Kol replied. "Bella and I were already planning on getting our own apartment two years ago before everything went wrong as we did everything together and didn't want to intrude on Nik and Myriam. Because despite everything, you still don't trust me and the only reason I'm not currently daggered is because I haven't done anything to warrant that - that, and you're all afraid of Bella. She treats me as a person and not as a child or a burden. So yes, I'll be moving across the street."

It was quiet for a while while Bella ate her burger and the rest of the family could mull over the words. "Fine, but the day after tomorrow, Bella's mine," Myriam piped up. "She and I have a lot of catching up to do, too."

The rest of the evening was friendly and relaxed; certainly not the way Bella had thought it would have gone in her mind. No, in her mind she had to turn everyone into animals and one by one reason with them, but she didn't have to. She realized she had been wrong by not including them in the last few weeks and that seemed to have been enough.

Kol had taken her hand while they were walking home and was telling stories from way-back-when as they were walking down the streets. He told her about the 1909 hurricane that caused 5000 people and more to lose their houses and how the Mikaelsons were one of the main forces of rebuilding; supplying the city with building materials, funding, and whatever the city needed. How Rebekah loved to play nurse and became a nurse at the height of the bubonic plague and continued for years when influenza struck New Orleans.

Bella merely smiled at him, loving to hear his voice and talking so vividly about the past. If it were up to her, he could recite the entire phonebook, and she'd happily drift off to sleep. "What did you do for the last two years?" She eventually asked, curious. "And I don't care if you involve Davina - after all, she was a big part of your life regardless of what she's done."

Kol let out a breath. "Well, I suppose…" He nervously ran a hand through his hair. "Are you sure?" He wasn't sure if it was a good idea. Despite everything, he didn't feel that he lived in the past two years, he merely was, and there was nothing really to talk about.

"Kol, I missed two years of your life. Fill me in, tell me!" Bella smiled at him as she squeezed his hand. They were almost at the apartment now, but she wanted to know.

It was sweet though, that Bella was actively trying to engage him. Bless her heart. Even after the night she had, no doubt freaking out a lot, she wanted to have this conversation now. Come to think of it, it was likely he was going to have to omit a few things, such as finishing the dagger that could neutralize Niklaus. She would not like it that in her absence, he wanted to protect himself. "Do you have any alcohol in your house?" He definitely needed more alcohol for this.

"I do. And snacks. So many snacks. And ice cream. Chips with ice cream is heaven."

"Good," he nodded. "Because we're going to need it." He then thought for a moment. "Uhm… on second thought… let me get a few blood bags from the compound?"

Bella narrowed her eyes at him. "I thought you had it under control."

Kol winced almost as if he was scolded for being a wayward child. "Had." She stopped in front of her door and turned to him, hands on her waist. Oh yeah, he was in trouble alright. "It was all right; I had it under control while I was in Forks, I swear. Then Nik called me back, and I met Davina and then… I started to spiral out of control and…"

She had forgotten that Davina managed to have Kol live on the edge for so long. Enough blood to sustain and appear fine, but not really not enough to fight whatever she was doing to him. "Fine. Get your blood bags."

Was she actually giving him her permission or mocking him? He wasn't sure. "I just don't want to accidentally end up hurting you or someone in the street…"

At least he was being upfront about his inability to control himself, although he had shown tremendous restraint during dinner - apart from attacking that one guy who bought her a drink. It was likely more like a safety blanket for him now, to just have the blood bags just in case. This whole need to explain himself felt wrong to her. He almost sounded like an addict. Which, basically, vampires could be classified as anyway. "And while you're at it, bring a change of clothes too," she winked at him before turning around and unlocking the door. "I'll be right here."

He wasn't even gone for five minutes, but when he returned with a bag of clothes and a few blood bags, she was still standing at her door, smiling invitingly at him. Oh, he had missed that smile of hers. "Sorry I took so long."

"Dude," Bella rolled her eyes at him and took his hand. "Kol Mikaelson, please come inside and allow me to welcome you to your new home."

Closing the door behind him, he followed Bella up the stairs and was surprised by the immense space the apartment had. The fixings were all made out of wood, too, much like the guest house she had - or still has - on the Salvatore property. It was very calming, very earthy and the fairy lights made it look absolutely magical. If it weren't for the discarded bags, cartons, bottles, clothes and dishes laying around. "Wow, Bella."

"Awesome, isn't it? Helios gave it to me," she said as she showed Kol the kitchen so he could put his blood bags in the fridge. "I think there's more to this gift of his, but I reckon I'll be told later."

The kitchen was even worse. There were dirty dishes everywhere, and her dishwasher was stuffed. There was a small area that was clean, which was likely what she kept clean but other than that, the house was a mess. Opening the fridge, he noticed a few bottles of wine and some leftover food, but at least it wasn't moldy or anything.

This mess was unlike his Bella. She always kept things tidy and clean. Even when they were traveling together, she made sure the car was spotless. That they always had food and water on them and that there was no mess.

It kind of made sense, though. Bella had been this tiny ball of anxiety all evening that didn't quite go away until he and her were by themselves, and he was now worried if she was doing okay. He and his siblings were used to events having a huge impact on them, getting blindsided. It was never fun, but it happened. Because of who they were. Because of their name. Because of the amount of years they were alive. But Bella? This was all new to her, and she had done what she always had done; retreated and tried to make peace with it all by herself.

Screw his blood lust; there were worse matters at hand. "You're a mess."

Bella huffed as she rinsed two glasses and got a bottle of wine out of the fridge. "No, I'm not," she smiled at him as she walked to the living room. She set down the glasses and the bottle before getting rid of the blanket on the couch. "You were going to tell me about the last two years."

"Yeah, before I noticed that you're a mess!"

"My house is a mess," she pointed out as she poured them wine. "Just for your information, I didn't think that this evening would have a positive ending with you coming here, so I didn't get to clean up. It doesn't mean that I'm a mess."

Oh, he definitely sensed some hostility there.

"Do you want me to clean up?"

He smiled at her as he sat down. "No, darling, it's alright," he took a glass and took a sip of it. He was determined to fix this. "Well, after I returned from Forks upon Nik's request, I was told to make nice with the witches. While Myriam had taken care of Marcel - I've told you about him, haven't I?" When Bella nodded, he continued. "The witches were still not quite at ease. Seeing as my relationship with the witches has always been better than the ones they have with my siblings…" Kol shrugged. "As it turned out, Marcel used this witch to control the other witches. Nik and Myriam took a liking to the local bartender, the waitress you've met this evening. Camille. I don't know; perhaps they wanted to have couple's therapy or more kinky things. It's a surprise she's still alive. Uh… Marcel had somehow convinced his super witch that while she was a Harvest girl - it's a stupid little thing the Ancestors want to happen every 300 years, involves a lot of blood, dying and then being resurrected. Like a cult. Like… they want the witches' power to return it to the community, that sort of nonsense - that this witch didn't have to go through with it. This angered the Ancestors and nearly destroyed New Orleans."

"It's Davina, isn't it?"

"Yes, but that doesn't matter," he said as he downed the rest of his glass and reached for the bottle. "Elijah and I had to save Nik and Rebekah from a witch from our past, which we did. We had to deal with a powerful warlock from our past, which we did and survived. And then? The whole thing with the Guerrera's started, and you're responsible for its conclusion," Kol beamed proudly at her. "And you came back and saved us from the clutches of the Ancestors."

"I'm just glad you're all yourselves again."

"Almost," he replied, setting down his glass and turning towards her, searching her face for - he wasn't sure what. Anything out of place. "Your turn."

"Of?"

"What did you do in the last two years?"

She smiled then. "In the last two years I met this awesome guy, but our first meeting was kind of strange. He was in a coffin, you see."

Blinking, he didn't understand her response. What kind of morbid answer was that?


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N:** Due to FFnet's problems with mail notifications, it's likely you haven't read chapter 25 when I uploaded it on May 7th. Go read that chapter first before reading this otherwise it won't make sense! xx

* * *

"I met you, dumbass," Bella let out a snort after seeing the dumbfounded look on Kol's face. "It hasn't been two years for me, remember?"

"That's not funny. For a moment there I thought I had to go and kill someone."

"No killing," she replied as she, too, set down the glass of wine and pulled him into her arms, holding him close. "I'm sorry for the last two years, Kol. I'm sorry for what she did to you."

Alright, this certainly was strange, but he decided to roll with it because it was actually quite nice to be in her arms. Shifting so that he was comfortable too, he sighed as he laid his head on her breasts - comfy pillows. "It's alright, Bella, you know I've been through worse."

"It's still not okay," she replied softly as she ran a hand through his hair. "You were violated and taken advantage of. That's not alright."

He let out a huff. "Good thing I killed the bitch, then. I took my revenge, Bella. It's alright now. Now tell me about your time spent with Hades."

"Hades had me clean up my own mess, there were thousands of souls that I brought to him - apparently I freaked out that much that I did a very big ghost cleanse," she said hesitantly, not sure how to explain the experience to him. "It was strange, you know. All these people from different times, different ways that killed them… there were small children… who wants to kill kids, Kol? Who does that?"

He knew damn well that she knew that he once considered killing Marcel when he was still a child. "Very disturbed minds, I suppose."

"But also happy stories, you know. Like Virginia and Elizabeth. Elizabeth died a long time ago, she was drowned in the water by a very powerful man, and her spirit rested at the banks near the bridge. Virginia wasn't a witch, but slightly sensitive and a believer of anything supernatural, and she happened upon Elizabeth's energy one day. And never stopped bringing Elizabeth gifts, even in her old age. Until she died herself; at the same time I freaked out while we were crossing the bridge, Virginia had a massive heart attack and died on the spot she came to to visit Elizabeth. They were both at Hades, and finally able to meet and interact and... It was so sweet, Kol. And they decided to stay with Hades. I mean… that was beautiful."

"You're joking."

"No, I'm not," Bella replied, shaking her head. "I even went to visit Virginia's urn at the Columbarium at Mt. Olivet in Gentilly and she died on the exact date as we crossed that bridge." She smiled then. "I know she's not around anymore, but I brought her flowers and a teddy bear anyway, just like she's done for Elizabeth all these years."

"You need to start protecting your heart more, Bella," he looked up to her from his comfortable position, still in her arms, still his head resting on her breasts. How they made it work, was beyond him. "You care too much about people."

"It's my caring too much that got you back in the land of the living so don't even start," she said with a warning. "Hades dialed down the whole ghost thing for me so I can have a normal life as much as I can. Anytime I want, I could open myself up again, he showed me how, but I am so glad that for the first time since it all started, I can breathe."

Kol could feel her getting restless, but didn't move. She was going to have to sit down and deal with whatever was bothering her.

"He also opened up other things for me, such as me being able to turn invisible or to turn into someone else on the surface; it's all an illusion. If you look real close or if you know; you can see right through it. And other stuff. And stuff I didn't want. Either never or not yet. I'm not ready for it all and Hades understood that. He was so… understanding and pissed off at the same time. Patronizing. But understanding and kind."

"When you were Davina… at some point I thought I was seeing things because Davina sounded so unlike herself and more like you, I thought I saw a shimmer of you."

"Yeah, you could have," she replied with a smile. "My abilities aren't fool proof because I'm a demi-Goddess, I'm not a full God. Like… with Henrik? I had to have Hades with us because I can't do the things he can do. Well, that, and he's the friggin' God of the underworld."

"And I saw your confrontation with Hades in the street," Kol moved so that he was sitting upright and could pull Bella into his arms. "My little tiny ball of fire."

"Yeah well, I was angry with Davina and the witches and I would have done something stupid if he hadn't stopped me."

"And I would have lost you again. This time for good."

"Yeah," she let out a breath as she tried to relax. "Don't have to worry about that anymore, either. With this apartment came the gift of sense. It's likely the result of Helios making a bargain with Hades."

"Just wondering, who made Hades the boss of you? Shouldn't it be Zeus or someone else?"

Bella shrugged. "According to Hades, Helios fucked up big time with me. Treating me like a grand daughter instead of a human girl who got into her powers and not knowing what to do with them. There's this whole story to the Battle of the Gods that isn't in the history books but compared to the Titans, the Olympians are innocents and that's why Hades and his brothers went after the Titans in the first place. To restore order."

"And Helios is a Titan."

"And I'm the daughter of a Titan's daughter," Bella nodded and let out a breath. "Everything I do gets scrutinized because I'm the first one in centuries that's shown promise of being a good girl and not something chaotic or unbalanced. One of the first things Helios said to me was that Psyche said I was a good egg. Promising. And because I said I was afraid of myself and of what I could do, we tested a few of my abilities, and I decided I don't want them active. Most of them. Jesus, Kol, I could take over the world if I wanted to - cause chaos all over and fuck, I don't want that."

"You won't."

"No, I know I won't because I'm in control now. I know what I can do. I just need to manage my anger a little bit so I don't fuck up and do a lot of damage because in the end, it'll be me who's caused harm or mayhem. It'll be on me and even now that I don't have a permanent eviction order over my head, it'll be on me. I'll have to clean up my own mess - or else."

Kol let out a snort. "You know what you sound like?"

"A whiner?"

"No," He kissed the top of her head. "A vampire. Granted, a very souped up vampire who's more powerful than Niklaus Mikaelson the big bad hybrid, but a vampire nonetheless. We can break someone's neck with our pinkies. Take over countries by compelling people. Power is all consuming and it's difficult to find a balance and not let it take you over."

Bella let out a huff and yawned, the events of the evening finally wearing her down. "I've got control over _that_. Don't worry, I won't take over the world or anything."

"Could be fun."

"No," she shook her head, yawning again and shifting to get more comfortable. It didn't take long for her to doze off completely as Kol remained quiet, knowing that she needed her sleep.

He had to admit, he was loving this. His girl back in his arms where she belonged, happily snoozing away as if nothing was wrong, but then there was her apartment and it was a mess. She was likely dealing with a lot more stuff than she was letting on and he felt like he needed to fix it. Fix _her_.

After a couple of hours, he carefully brought her to her bedroom and tucked her in. There were even more wayward clothes in the space and he simply couldn't deal with this himself. Using his speed, he picked everything up and made sure the bedroom was nice and tidy before heading downstairs. Putting a load of laundry in the washing machine and cleaned up the rest of the apartment.

Kol knew that he was risking Bella's anger, for cleaning up, but he just couldn't bare to see her like this. Her problem wasn't her abilities. No, she was emotionally a mess, because of the witches, because because of them, she got hurt. Her heart was broken.

Yeah, he needed to fix that. This wasn't about him, this was about her.

~o.O.o~

Bella felt slightly disoriented when she woke up to the smell of fresh bagels, coffee and orange juice. While she felt as if she had had a decent sleep, a long sleep, something was off. There was no one else in the house that could have made the- _Shit._ Bella shot up straight in bed, finding her bedroom clear of her clothes and items. Had she been sleep cleaning? No.

Realizing she was still dressed, she carefully made her way out of the bedroom. Her house smelled of cleaning detergent. Items that were previously on the stairs were now gone, everything looked clean and organized. It didn't feel like her cozy home anymore. "No," she said softly as she stood at the bottom of the stairs and looked around, devastated - almost as if someone had kicked a puppy or as if she had lost everything.

"Morning," Kol greeted her as he walked up to her with a steaming hot cup of coffee.

Right. Kol came home with her last night. Last night had been fun and she had taken him back home with him. They had talked. They had kissed and she had fallen asleep against him. Last night had been the first time she'd been around the family again. Kol was in her house. It had been a spur of the moment thing because she wanted him back and she hadn't cleaned up her house, which only meant that he cleaned up. "You cleaned up," it was a statement, not even a question, as she kept looking around. "Why?"

"Well, if I'm going to move in, there needs to be space, right?" He smiled at her as he handed her the mug of coffee. "Are you okay?"

"Waking up, thanks," she muttered as she forced her head to jolt in gear. It had been difficult lately, sleeping in late, or not leaving bed at all. "You cleaned up my mess."

"Yes I did. The last load of laundry is currently in the washer as well."

"But it's my mess. Not yours to clean up."

"Oh, but now your mess is my mess too," he said as he pointed to the coffee. "Drink up and come join me in the kitchen for breakfast, we're going to have a little chat."

Right. Kol was moving in, because that was what she wanted last night, what she'd wanted for weeks now, because she loved him. He was hers. But she wasn't ready. Whatever the alcohol had her think last night, she wasn't ready for this. Following him to the kitchen, she was amazed by the amount of food for the two of them.

Kol helped her to sit down on one of the bar stools and made her a cream cheese bagel before putting it down on a plate in front of her, carefully watching her as she slowly woke up while sipping her coffee. When she started to nibble on her bagel, curiously eyeing him, he knew she was ready for a conversation. "You do know that I know what it's like to be taken out of life only to return years later. It sucks. I suppose you're lucky that it was only nearly two years instead of a hundred," he said with a slight chuckle, earning him an angry look from his goddess. "It's alright, Bella. I understand that it's frightening as well, because you're in this completely different world where you're aware of time passing and knowing that down here, it passess differently. And I am sorry, truly, I am. But look at it this way; it's another part of you that you've discovered."

Bella let out a grunt as she chewed on her delicious bagel. "It's the stupidest part of being what I am."

"Yes," he said wholeheartedly. "But know that I understand how it feels. Besides, two years, no big deal, I've done longer!"

"It's not a joke, Kol," she said angrily. "What if it happens again?"

"It won't. And if it does, well, I'll just have Nik dagger me until you come back so I don't get into trouble."

"Don't you dare," she told him before she took another bite of her bagel.

He cheekily smiled as he took a sip of his bloodied up coffee. It was the worst mistake he'd ever made, but he was hungry. He'd gone through quite a lot of blood bags during the night while he'd been fretting and cleaning, but it was all out of love, for her. As was him trying to mask the blood by mixing it with coffee. Kol knew that he'd even out again soon, Bella's presence had always made him feel better and more in control. It'd just take a few days - worst case scenario would be weeks. "We have all missed you very much, despite what happened with the Ancestors. Ever since you freed us all, we have this Bella shaped hole in our lives, so last night was brilliant. It was fun, wasn't it?"

Bella nodded as she took a sip of her coffee.

"The last thing you should be afraid of is for us to reject you. Myriam, for one, kept texting me all night, seeing if she could break the deal we made last night as to who gets to spend time with you first. Nothing has changed, Bella."

"But it has."

"No, it hasn't. You really need to get that out of your head, darling, because you're the one who distanced yourself from us, not the other way around. You shouldn't punish yourself for what happened after Hades took you for some lessons, you shouldn't. You needed it, even I couldn't help you with that. We all just wished that he would have said something before taking you away like that. That would have made it a lot better for all of us," he set down his mug and made his way over to her, kissing her on top of her head. "Hadn't the Ancestors meddled with our lives, we would have never turned our backs on you. Ever. You're family, Bella. You're mine."

"Yeah, I don't know if I-"

"When you get to live as long as we have, you tend to forget that events like these - attacks like these - can have a big impact on someone who hasn't. We brushed this off while our hatred towards the witches grew. We know that what made us act differently was beyond our power - of course, then you've got Nik, the special snowflake, whom they had a harder time controlling," he said slightly frustrated, he always hated that special side of his brother. "I understand that it might be a little bit harder for you to trust us again. To allow yourself to be loved and adored as before. So, here's my proposal to you," he tucked an unruly strand of her hair behind her ear. "You and I aren't going to move in together. Not just yet."

"What?" She nearly dropped her mug of coffee in shock.

He had thought long and hard about this while cleaning up the mess that was her apartment. She needed room to grow. Room to heal. He understood her distancing now. It wasn't good, but she really needed more time. And he figured the best way to do that was to give her everything she'd never had before; new experiences. Being treated proper. Like the lady she was.

"No, darling," he smirked as he placed another kiss on top of her head. "Oh, make no mistake, you and I are together. There's no looking at other guys for you or I will snap their neck or make a meal out of them, but… you see, Bella, your only experiences with men are with boys, high school. No real dates, no real courting… even you and I didn't quite date. We met and we were together. Just like that. And that's not going to change. I plan on being here with you as often as you allow me to, but no sleepovers. No. I'm going to court you as well as I can. Treat you to dinners, the cinema, the whole potential eternal and forever love experience before I'm moving in. To show you that it's possible."

"You can do that while being here." Why was she feeling so panicky? She had admitted to herself only moments ago that she wasn't ready for him yet, and now he was giving her the space that she still needed, and it wasn't good enough. She wanted him close.

"Oh, there's nothing more that I'd want, but you are not ready for me yet, for us. Not in that way. I'm going to talk to Elijah to have us swap bedrooms so that all I have to do is jump balconies to be with you, but I'm going to make you feel like the beautiful girl that you are again. Do things proper, like making you breakfast. I'll do that every morning."

She couldn't breathe.

"I'm not rejecting you," he said, slowly prying her hand off of her coffee mug and put his arms around her. "I am loving you. I'm not moving in, I won't sleep here, but I will be with you every day to hang out. Or go on silly little dates."

"What if Myriam wants to hang out?"

"Then you and Myriam hang out and I'll stay here. Or I'll be at the compound waiting for you to return so we can watch a movie. Or for me to watch you slave away over that laptop of yours was you type your stories. It's going to be alright, I'm going to show you that you can trust me. Prove myself to you."

"But I do!"

"No, not fully, darling, I can feel it," he sighed as he lifted her chin and softly kissed her lips. "But that's alright. I can be very patient when it comes to you." Kol kissed her again and then released her from his arms. "Finish your bagel and go take a shower, freshen up. Oh, wear something pretty. I have the perfect idea for our first date!"


	27. Chapter 27

There was something about taking things slow enough. Bella started smiling more as weeks passed, relaxing in Kol's presence and even coming to the Compound on her own, spending time with Myriam. Girls nights out for Myriam, Rebekah and Bella, spa days - to which Bella reluctantly agreed because she still didn't like them, romantic dates and mostly spending time in each other's presence while Kol played video games and Bella wrote.

The idea was to bring Bella back to her humanity, back in touch with her feelings because there were more emotions than anger and the fear of abandonment - while it was different for the Mikaelsons as they were all vampires, Bella was still very much human despite her status as a demi-god. It was what made her human that set her aside from everyone else, it was also what had allowed her to roam the Earth instead of being destroyed or taken back - it wasn't rocket science. Easy to figure out, but not for her.

And not only did Bella get better, Kol finally evened out again too. Even under Davina's thumb he had been erratic and more prone to bursts of anger, and in the weeks following that when Bella needed some distance, it only got worse, but he was back to his happy self, and he was itching to get out of New Orleans for a while. Saint-Tropez sounded nice. Hell, the whole French Riviera sounded nice about now. Sun, warmth, water, good food… Bella in a bikini…

They deserved a break.

He had spoken to Nik and Myriam about it and while Myriam wanted to go, Nik wasn't too keen on leaving New Orleans now that it was back into their hands and peace had once again descended upon their city. However, they both agreed that it would be a good thing for Bella and Kol to travel like they did before all of this. Europe would be a nice change of pace.

"Pack light!" Kol announced as he walked into Bella's apartment that morning, the thud told him that he had scared her awake and out of bed. He quickly made his way up to her bedroom to make sure she was alright, and all she did was look at him angrily. "Good morning, darling," he smiled at her and softly kissed her. "Get dressed and grab your essentials, we're going on a trip."

"Coffee?"

"We'll get some on the way."

"Where we going?" Bella mumbled as she made her way to the bathroom to freshen up and tame her hair that had gotten tangled during her uneasy sleep. When she emerged again, he was holding out one of her summer dresses for her. "No."

"Yes," he smirked. "Trust me on this. And pack some comfy slippers. That's all, the rest we can buy when we get there."

"Where we going?" She asked again, reluctantly rummaging through her underwear drawer to find matching underwear to wear underneath that dress, deciding to humor him.

"It's a surprise, but hurry up, there's a car waiting downstairs," Kol sat down on the bed and kept his eyes on her, admiring her, as she got changed. It had been a challenge to keep his hands to himself over the last few weeks, but it had also been very exciting. It had been a mess of his own making; he had insisted on taking things slowly with each other. With her. No sleep overs and nothing more than a little snogging and cuddling. But that was going to change.

Bella grabbed her bag and packed her laptop, phone, wallet and digital camera before finding her fluffy pink bunny slippers and putting it in there as well as she decided to humor him even further. "Anything else?" But she really wanted coffee.

"Nah, we'll buy whatever we need when we arrive at our destination," Kol smiled at her as he took her hand and started to lead her down the stairs to her front door. "Let's go, my gorgeous goddess."

"Where are we going?"

"I applaud you for using complete sentences, but I will not award that with a destination," he laughed as he closed the door behind her before helping her into the car, crawling in beside her and tapped the driver on his shoulder to drive to the airport. "I know how much you love surprises, but trust it'll be only you and I going to this destination."

She cuddled up against him in the car, her arms around his waist, her head against his shoulder. "You still owe me coffee."

"Don't worry," he laughed. Kol blindfolded her before the airport got in sight of them and Bella didn't like it at all. She was still rolling with it, which was great. He carried her all the way through the building to the private plane waiting for them, ignoring the strange looks he was getting. "Don't worry, she's still very much alive and awake, aren't you darling?"

"Help, I'm being abducted," she said with a slight giggle. "Can I pull off my blindfold now?"

"No," he playfully smacked her ass and got her inside the plane. Setting her down with ease, he removed the blindfold and smiled widely. "Tadaa."

She looked around, unsure where they were and peeked out of the window. "We're on a plane?" Bella sounded surprised, because she was. She'd never been out of the country before - that is, if they were going out of the country.

"Yes."

"Where are we going?" Bella then realized that she and him were the only ones on the plane. "Aren't planes supposed to be like buses instead of mini apartments?"

"Perks of being a Mikaelson, darling," he fastened her belt before sitting down next to her and doing the same. "We travel in style. We have an amazing car waiting for us when we land in… ohh… twelve hours?"

They were definitely going out of the country. Kol was taking her away from everything. "We're not going to Greece, are we?"

"Oh, hell no. We're going to some place much better and comfortable for the both of us," he smiled as the plane started to move. "But until then, we're traveling in all the comforts in the world, and you'll get your coffee as soon as we're flying."

~o.O.o~

"France?" Bella was bouncing on her feet after they left the plane. "You took me to France?"

"The best area in France, mind you," he laughed as he pulled her into his arms, kissing her gently on her lips. "Who needs Paris when you have the French Riviera? Beaches everywhere! Who knows, we might even go on a yacht for a couple of days! Allow me to spoil you rotten, Bella," he then pointed at the silver Porsche 911 that was waiting for them. "And spoil myself in the process, I couldn't help myself - don't worry, it's a rental, but isn't it gorgeous?" Kol smirked as he helped Bella into the car. "I love fast cars."

"I doubt you're going to hold to the speed limit?"

"Darling, this car is made for speed, don't worry, I'll take real good care of you," he kissed her before going around the car and hopped in. "Saint-Tropez here we come!"

Bella didn't know what was worse; the plane taking off or landing or Kol skidding away in the car, but she loved the big smile on his face as they raced over the road towards the city. She had already told him that she didn't need fancy vacations, but Kol had insisted and it wasn't anything fancy. Well, that was a lie.

Only the best was good for them, there were reservations for them for a large suite in a 19th century castle that was on a hill and close to the sea. Granted, he wanted a hotel at the beach, but sleeping in castles was something Bella had to experience, according to Kol. And it wasn't as if it wasn't a great hotel; there were swimming pools, a wellness centre, hot tubs, restaurant, everything they'd ever need.

Kol was saddened by the fact that it hadn't been a long drive to the castle, but it had been a fun one, seeing Bella look at the scenery in awe, and laugh at him when he was frustrated that inside the city, he had to comply with the speed limit because the alternative was to run everyone over and ruin the car.

Bella was amazed by the size of the suite; it was almost as big as her apartment in New Orleans. There were two bedrooms, a large bathroom with a hot tub and a regular shower/bath combination, a large walk in closet, a living room area and so many extras that it was simply ridiculous. She loved the view they had from their balcony - they could see the sea from where they were at and had a lovely view over the garden. There was a table with two comfortable chairs on their balcony and Bella could see herself write a little there while they enjoyed the sun. It was perfect. Very over the top and likely very costly, but it was perfect.

Since they still had most of the day to be awake, Kol took her into town to shop. They both needed clothes, and he was wondering if he could convince Bella to simply walk around in a bikini all day long - embrace the fact that nobody could care about what she wore, she'd look stunning either way. Much to his surprise, she agreed that with the heat they were experiencing, the less clothes was better, and she picked out a few sets that she liked, accompanied with some skirt item to cover herself up significantly.

And, yes, for appearances sake in case they'd visit a restaurant, they bought a set of normal clothes as well. Kol was happy with a few t-shirts and swimming trunks.

Bella could see why Kol had picked Saint-Tropez as the place to go to; the atmosphere of the city was infectious; everyone seemed to live without a care in the world and the people were friendly. She was surprised to see little shops by the biggest and most expensive brands that you'd normally see in Paris or London or even New York, but Kol explained to her that Saint-Tropez was the world's worst best secret ever. A lot of billionaires choose the area to spend their holidays because of the scenery and the people.

And should Bella see something she'd like for her own home or maybe as a gift for Myriam or Rebekah, or even Nik, they'd send it home by mail. No expenses spared. Not a care in the world. Just enjoyment and debauchery; something the Mikaelsons were very good at in times of peace.

Oh, Kol knew that he was probably taking things too far; Bella was still looking at the price tags and nearly fainting at some of the prices. Yes, they were ridiculous. Who cares? Only the best for his girl.

They went back to the hotel room where Bella happily changed into one of her new bikinis and joined him on their balcony after room service brought them a bottle of Rosé wine. "Wow," Kol nearly choked on his glass of wine as she sat down in the lounge chair beside him. "You're trying to kill me?"

"You wanted me to buy bikini's," Bella pointed out cheekily. "I'll be happy to wear them for you, but just for you. Not in front of the family," she added quickly. "Hell no."

He was just happy that she'd taken to the idea so easily and wasn't shying away from showing off that magnificent body of hers. Kol handed her a glass of wine and sighed happily. "It'll be quite hard for me to keep my hands off of you now."

She playfully smirked at him as she sipped her wine. "Thank you for taking us away from New Orleans for a bit."

He brought his chair closer to hers as he sat down again. "The only reason we remain sane, or at least I do, is to travel after something has happened. Rebekah, Elijah and Nik are always together, now with Myriam thrown into the mix as well, but me? I've always gone off on my own because the longer I was away from Nik, the longer I got to live outside of my box. Sunny Europe has always been a favourite of mine - unless they're all in Europe, then Australia will do," Kol sighed happily as he took a sip of his wine. "Get used to this, Bella, we'll be doing this a lot."

"But what about-"

"Don't you worry about that, this is all peanuts for us. We live to enjoy ourselves, with the occasional killing, but this is what I like. I loved it when we traveled through the United States, just the two of us. I can give you the world, we can go anywhere," he raised his glass to her with a smile. "Here's to never getting bored," he toasted before he took another sip. "And to you never to bring up the price of anything ever again," he added with a grin.

"Jerk," Bella huffed, taking a sip of her drink, really liking the taste of it, but she wanted to taste something else and she hoped that she was going to have a taste of that soon, or else she figured she might burst.

"Ah, but you love me and my handsome face."

Bella sighed exasperatedly. "Unfortunately, I do." She then looked at her wrist, as if there was a watch on it. "Hmm, I must say, you have excellent self-control, Kol Mikaelson," she noted. "Here I am, dressed in almost nothing, still with the glass of wine in my hand… you in that chair next to me…"

He looked like a fish on dry land, gasping for air as he really hadn't wanted to impose on her, to make it clear that he was that interested. Because he was. And he wanted her now."Bella, I-"

"It's about time, isn't it?" she looked at him before setting her glass down and moving so that she was on her knees in her chair. "For the first few weeks after… I was glad that you left at night, but as weeks progressed… I kinda wanted you to stay…"

"I wanted to stay."

"Then why didn't you say anything?" she smiled at him, lightly brushing her hand on his cheek. "Were you leaving it up to me? That's not like you, at all."

Kol sighed and nodded as he leaned into her hand. "I believed you weren't completely done healing yet."

She bit her lip as she carefully looked at him, although she already knew the answer to her question. "Am I now?"

He lifted her out of her chair and into his lap, putting his arms around her. "I don't know, are you?" Kol asked playfully as Bella's hands slid underneath his shirt, trying to get him out of it. "Maybe another night in a separate bed…"

"Don't you dare," she tugged fiercely on his shirt, causing him to have to give in to her pulling it off of him. "That second bedroom is offensive," Bella replied happily once she'd discarded his shirt. "Besides… we do need to work up an appetite for dinner…" She pressed her body against his naked torso as she fiercely kissed him, burying her hands in his hair.

"Are you sure?" He muttered through the kiss, earning him a tug on his hair as an answer. Putting his arms around her again, he made sure she could cling on to him as he got up and headed to the bedroom with her, careful not to bump into anything, although the wall sounded pretty good right now. No, they were both still too dressed for that.

Breaking off the kiss, he gently set her down on the ground and undid himself from his shoes and pants before tearing up her new bikini. She had others. This hadn't even been the prettiest one, who cared? When he looked at her, she appeared to be pouting. Well, Bella obviously cared about that one. "We'll get you another one tomorrow," he promised before backing her up against the wall as he kissed her again, hard and hungry.

"Oh," she let out a moan when she realized what he was going to do, a shiver running over her body in anticipation as she eagerly answered his kiss and jumped up to wrap her legs around him at the moment her back hit the pristine wall.

It was the wall, the bed, the bathtub and the bed again before they both fully had gotten rid of the tension that had built up between them in the past few weeks and before Bella really needed to take a break, unable to feel her legs.

Kol ordered room service and snuggled up to Bella in bed, taking her into his arms, where she belonged. Bella let out a slight giggle, still floating on cloud nine. "You know, you might have to carry me around for the rest of our lives when the feeling in my legs don't return."

"Don't be weird," he laughed and kissed the top of her head. "Nothing my blood can't cure, and for God's sake, Bella, you're a demi-Goddess, no doubt you have the ability to self-heal."

Bella huffed. "And here I thought it'd be a romantic thing for you to carry me everywhere."

"No," he shook his head. "Absolutely not."

She stretched herself as if she was a kitten and rolled further into him. "I'm only teasing, don't worry," she replied as she drew a circle on his bicep with her finger as she looked up at him. "Thank you."

"What for now?" Kol laughed as he softly kissed her. "The great sex? That was both of us, darling."

"No… well, yes, but for not giving up on me."

"Never," he kissed her again. "I will always find my way back to you, and if you get lost, I will help you find your way back to me."

She giggled then. "Good, because I kind of suck at reading maps."

* * *

 **A/N:** The other day I've uploaded a short story called Outdoor Cooking, a Twilight fic with a Peter/Bella pairing, check it out!


	28. Chapter 28

After two weeks of Saint-Tropez, Kol wanted some more action in their lives. There were so many ancient settlements along the coast and there was one close by, perhaps only an hour away - well, less with Kol driving the Porsche to its fullest potential, which was also close to two theme parks; one waterpark with a lot of crazy slides and another one with roller coasters. Some adrenaline in their bodies for fun was going to be amazing.

Granted, he wasn't too happy with the lack of choice when it came to hotels or apartments, but they were only going to stay there a few days at most.

After that, they travelled to Cannes, Kol didn't like it very much but it was something Bella needed to experience, the crazy buzz of Cannes. Next up, Antibes. He knew that Bella didn't like sea animals in captivity, but there was a place where they had killer whales and you could actually meet the dolphins. Of course, he had arranged it so that they could privately swim with the creatures for a while, and Bella did like that.

When they were a month and a half into their walkabout and halfway through Italy as they followed the coast, Kol received a message from his brother Niklaus that they needed Bella's help in New Orleans. He found this strange, because they had made it clear to Bella, but also to themselves, that they'd never rely on Bella to bail the family out of tight spots.

While they were sitting on the terrace of their hotel on Giglio Island and sipping on a glass of wine, Kol was slightly worried by Nik's text message and decided to call him on speaker. "What's going on, Nik? Are you alright?"

" _Oh, just fine,"_ the hybrid sneered on the other end of the phone. " _Yet again a relative causing some problems and whatever we try, we can't stop it."_

Kol thought for a moment. It was next to impossible for the relative being either one of their parents or their brother Finn, as they were dead. "Who?"

" _Our lovely aunt Dahlia."_

"Huh," he said impressed. He had heard of his mother's sister, of course, but had never truly met her as mother and her had fallen out with each other. But how was she still alive?

" _She's a very powerful witch, brother, she's tied herself to the magic of our sister Freya."_

"Freya died?"

" _No, Kol. That had been a lie… come home, I'll explain when you get here."_

"Yeah, Nik, that might take a little while," Kol scratched his head, looking over at Bella, who didn't look all too happy. "We're on an island. We're going to have to take a ferry to a peninsula and then drive to Rome to get to a plane… Ah… we'll be there as soon as we can be."

" _You'd better hurry, this woman is a bloody nuisance and the Regent and the Ancestors are getting antsy. Bella, after all, promised to ensure their safety when one of our enemies would come to town."_

"I did do that," Bella winced.

"Yes, you did do that," Kol laughed as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "But that's alright, we can always choose to ignore my brother's plight."

" _I'm still here!"_

"I always keep my word, remember?" Bella reminded him. "Besides, it even counts double now that I'm an honorary Mikaelson."

" _There's nothing honorary about you, Isabella Swan. You're a Mikaelson, whether you like it or not. Now, come home and help us to keep the peace with the bloody witches."_

"See you in two days, Nik," Kol let out a snort and hung up on his brother. He tossed his phone onto the table and relaxed in his chair as he grabbed his glass of wine. "We're not leaving just yet, it'd be a shame to have this good wine go to waste."

"The ferry stopped for the day anyway," Bella shrugged, but already worrying about the state of New Orleans.

"Ah, no thinking about what could, can or won't happen, we're still on the other side of the world and tonight, we're going to conclude this epic trip epically," he playfully hit her on the head with a napkin.

"We could always go back after, right?"

Kol smiled brightly. "Yes, yes we can, darling, and we likely will!"

~o.O.o~

Myriam greeted them at the airport after landing. The moment Bella stepped off the stairs, Myriam was bear hugging her. "Oh, it's so glad to see you in person again. The pictures were great but to see you still in one piece after all this time is so much better."

"Hi," Bella laughed.

"And thank you for all those lovely little gifts you sent us. I had Klaus put up a shelf with his own bare hands to accommodate it all, he wasn't amused," she put an arm around Kol, too and marched them to the car. "You look great. Nice and tan and happy. I'm glad."

"How bad is it?" Kol sighed as he got into the car with the girls and put his arm around Bella. "You're being too friendly, Myriam Jenkins."

"Your long lost sister is a bitch," Myriam said grumpily. "Which I can completely understand because she's a victim of circumstance and basically your aunt's well of power, but damn, she's a true Mikaelson, just unpolished like you and your siblings. Klaus, of course, is amused by it."

"We were always told she died of the plague."

"I think that was a lie that Esther felt she could live with, the truth is a lot darker than that. Esther couldn't conceive so she made a deal with her sister who performed some magic and in return, would receive Esther's firstborn."

Kol groaned. "As if our family couldn't get any more dysfunctional. What do they want?"

"Freya wants to be free of Dahlia and join the family, Dahlia wants more power, guess who she's targeting?" Myriam shot at Kol, irritated. "I swear, she's messing with Klaus' head. I'm surprised he was able to call you for help."

"I'm not," Bella said as she put her head against Kol's shoulder as she watched New Orleans come closer and closer while they drove to the city. "He might simply be pretending to be messed with, he has quite the high tolerance to magic."

"Dahlia sounds like a leech," Kol sneered. "What's Nik thinking? What could we do?"

"It's not what you can do, it's what Bella can do," Myriam pointed out. "We don't have a witch on our side to deal with the magical enemy aspect of our lives and the one we do have is currently still linked to that shrew so she's of no help."

"I get it," Bella said quietly. "I'll fix it, just like I fixed Silas. We don't want the witches to be upset."

"Bella, we've tried, truly."

"Don't worry about it," she smiled at Myriam. "Anything for the family."

Kol huffed. "I'm not sure if I want another sibling around, no doubt she's a very powerful witch and Nik will be in awe and Elijah will be practically worshipping her and-"

"Hey," Bella smacked his arm. "You've got me now, always."

Kol softly kissed her. "So you'll make Dahlia go poof and then we can continue what we were doing?"

"No," Myriam pouted. "You're staying put for a while. We all miss you. Hey, Bella, maybe you can come and help out at the brothel?"

"Absolutely not!" Kol objected. "If anything, she'll be giving me private shows!"

~o.O.o~

They heard the entire story when they arrived at the compound, even meeting Freya Mikaelson, the eldest sister, and while it had been hard to believe, Bella could tell that this woman, this girl, was genuine about her heritage, much to Kol's annoyance. He believed that her only redeemable quality was that she was a kickass witch, and his brother would love to have her around just in case.

It was clear that Freya had everyone who had remained in New Orleans wrapped around her finger, and Bella believed that her intentions were of the good kind after having simply listened to what had been shared that night about her and Dahlia. And the past. Freya wasn't malicious, she was scared. Maybe she'd settle down somewhat once her biggest fear was defeated.

Of course, Bella's status as a demi-Goddess was kept from Freya. Despite the family bond, Klaus liked to have an ace up his sleeve, and it was only for Bella's protection. "So, what needs to happen to Dahlia to break her link to you?" Bella piped up eventually, as she had patiently listened on the couch, sipping her wine. "Does it require a spell or?" Oh, Bella knew it had been a spell; Freya had a dark cloud wafting all around her and it was likely that she could cleanse it with ease, as she had done previously on different occasions.

"She needs to die," Freya said angrily before pointing at Bella. "I thought this meeting was family only?"

"Love, Bella is our family as much as Myriam is," Klaus said kindly. "I suggest you be nice to her because she might be your only hope in ridding yourself of Dahlia's link, and our only hope to stop the wicked witch of the West. I also suggest not to antagonize her, she's known for her tricks."

"Oh please," Freya huffed. "I eat witches for breakfast."

Bella blinked at her and then shrugged before finishing off her wine. "Alright, I've heard enough, I'm going home," she softly kissed Kol. "Do you want to stay?"

"Yeah, I'm going to have some blood and then I'll be up," he smiled at her. "You're not going to cleanse her?"

"She doesn't deserve it," she kissed him again before heading out of the courtyard to their apartment.

Kol had an amused look on his face before heading towards the kitchen to fetch him some blood, hearing his siblings talk amongst themselves as he did.

"It's in your best interest to at least try to be civil with our Isabella," Elijah's voice sounded. "While she and I don't see eye to eye, I do respect her immensely."

"In other words, he's afraid of her," Myriam chipped in. "But he's right; be nice to her or she won't help."

"What can she do that I can't do myself?" Freya defended herself. "You've all been saying these wonderful things about her and how she'll make sure that this family is safe, but she can't be more powerful than me, what can she do?"

"She has saved this family more than once in the short amount of time that we've known her and for that, she deserves our respect. While getting her and Kol back from their trip to help us, it's still up to her if she's willing to do so," Elijah replied calmly. "While I predict she'll help, it's uncertain how or when."

Kol sauntered back onto the courtyard, blood bag in his hand as he sipped from it. "Oh, Bella will help, alright," he said as he passed his family. "If only our long lost sister had been kind, she'd have been released from our Aunt's influence and link tonight," he then waved. "Good night, Bella and I are going to try not to be too jetlagged in the morning while Freya ponders the next thing she'll say to my Bella. Might I suggest it to start with an apology?"

Something in the back of his mind was nagging at him and he sauntered right back into the courtyard. "Christmas, 1914," he said as he looked at Freya. "You were there."

"I was," she replied.

"As my date!"

Myriam laughed. "Took him long enough to realize he dated his own sister. Perv."

"Nothing happened!"

"It wasn't really a date," Freya explained, a humorous smile on her face. "Kol's so easy to flatter. Throw enough pretty words at him and he'll think you're in love with him. I simply wanted to spend time with my family even if they didn't know who I was."

Kol scowled. "Yeah, Bella was right in not helping you right off the bat," he said as he turned around and left again.

~o.O.o~

"I don't want to have breakfast at the compound," Bella sulked as she had entangled her legs with his and was using her body to stop him from leaving the bed.

"You did promise to help," Kol reminded her, not minding that Bella wanted to stay in bed longer, they were quite comfortable in their own bed, in their own little nest.

"I'm not sure I can help Freya without alerting your aunt to what I've done," she sighed as she drew little circles on his chest with her index finger. "The dark cloud around her is so thick, it might not even work and it'll only end when I take care of Dahlia. Using Freya as bait wouldn't really work. She wants Klaus, above all. She knows that Freya is linked to her and has no other option to return."

"How do you know?"

Bella shrugged. "It's just a feeling, I guess. I mean, it's really the ancient magic that's the problem here. The spell has been on Freya for a thousand years…"

"Sounds to me you have performance anxiety," Kol grinned as he flipped them over on the bed and started to nuzzle her neck. "Don't worry, darling, I'll be happy to fix that for you," he whispered in her ear.

"Down boy," she giggled as she tugged on his hair. "I need to show off today," she softly kissed him as she kept tugging on his hair. "But I promise you can have me anyway you want tonight."

"Anyway I want?" Kol's eyes lit up with excitement. "Oh, the possibilities… I might have to go shopping for that."

She laughed as she covered her eyes with her hand. "Oh boy."

He grinned as he got off of her. "Go take a shower. I won't join you, I might not be able to keep my hands to myself now."

Bella hummed for an answer, kissed him and started to get ready for the day. She already missed the idea of not having to put much clothes on other than a light shirt, a short skirt and a bikini underneath. But no, it was back to jeans and a shirt now, fully dressed. Her body was only Kol's to look at.

"Aw, darling," Kol whined as he left the bathroom after a quick shower and saw Bella's choice of clothes. "Jeans?"

She flashed him a smile. "My ass looks great in these, don't you think?"

"Yes, but…"

"Butt! Exactly!"

"Tease."

Kol wondered if Freya's first words to Bella were indeed an apology. Elder sister with a tragic backstory or not, it didn't give her the authority to be superior to everyone in their family. Niklaus and Elijah were still in charge, and if not, they needed to grow a pair of balls and tell sister dearest that she had to calm down. The way Kol saw it, both Myriam and Bella were higher up the family totem pole than their blood relative. Freya was more of an intruder than anything else.

When they stepped into the dining room, Freya was the first to rise. "Bella," she said a little unsure. "I have to apologize for my behaviour last night upon our first meet," she continued, and Kol was satisfied. "You do have to realize that I have been looking for my family for centuries and I have been fighting our aunt for just as long and I never believed that my siblings would be happy with someone outside the family." Alright, Kol thought. Close enough.

"You don't think they deserve to be?" Bella questioned, a little surprised by Freya's admission. "What's the point in having a long life when you can't share it with someone and be happy? I know your life hasn't been easy, Freya, and that you're happy that you're reunited with your siblings, but that doesn't mean you have to be rude to those in this family who are not related by blood."

Kol simply smiled in admiration of his girlfriend. Bella in Goddess mode was hot as hell. Granted, she was hot, period, but when she put human Bella aside in exchange for a better version, it almost melted his insides.

"You're not a witch."

"No, no, I'm not. And I'm not going to tell you what I am until we've gotten to know each other a little bit better, but trust that I am more powerful than you can imagine," Bella replied to Freya before stepping up to her and placed both her hands on Freya's shoulders in an attempt to cleanse the elder Mikaelson. She managed to chip away a little bit, but had to give up. "Eh, I tried. I'll have to try to do it the other way around then," she shrugged before sitting down beside Kol and grabbing them some beignets before she looked at Klaus. "You're going to take me to Dahlia and by the end of the day, everything will be over and done with."

"Love, I can't take you to our deranged aunt, what if-"

"She won't," Bella said playfully. "I could handle Silas, I can handle Dahlia."

"I have been Dahlia's prisoner for so long, you don't know what you're up against," Freya said a bit confused, almost as if something had changed around her. "Her connective magic is strong and she will draw from me if you engage her in battle."

"I won't engage her in battle," Bella blinked at Freya. "I try to resolve things peacefully without any bloodshed on my behalf."

"We have all the faith in our Bella to take care of our current problem, she knows we won't ask for her help unless there isn't anything we can do," Klaus said amused, seeing the confused look on Freya's face. "As you said a while ago, Freya, we'd need to have the ashes of a viking and we'd need a witch like my mother - which would mean we'd have to resurrect our parents and that's not an option. You shall be free at the end of the day."

"If you're going to hang out with Nik today, I'm going shopping for tonight," Kol whispered in Bella's ear. "Don't break him."

Bella huffed as she pushed a beignet in Kol's mouth. "Oh, I won't, I have other plans!"


	29. Chapter 29

On their way to the Bayou - that was the best place Bella could think of to meet a deranged Mikaelson without too much damage done to surroundings, Klaus filled her in about what Dahlia's original plan was; to have as many first born Mikaelsons in her fold as possible, for power. To covet the magic. It was no secret to Bella that the Mikaelsons were witches before they turned into vampires; Kol had openly admitted that he would have loved to have his magic back, but that he took solace in teaching everything he knew to witches while still learning from them as well.

During their trip in Italy they had met a witch or two and Bella had loved the excitement in his face when he could teach a witch something they hadn't previously known. He'd be the perfect candidate to open a school like Hogwarts and teach young witches. Come to think of it, Bella loved to teach as well, maybe that wasn't such a bad idea…

She then snorted. Yeah, right, a real life Hogwarts, that was a copyright battle waiting to happen.

"So what's the plan, Bella?" Klaus asked curiously. She had made him pack an extra set of clothes and he wasn't quite sure why. He had an idea, but that would be ludicrous, wouldn't it?

"That little shed at the water is still there?" She questioned him as they got out of the car and headed deeper into the Bayou.

"Yes."

"Good," she smiled at him as she made sure no one was around them and turned into a carbon copy of him. "OH! Bad mistake! Bad! Oh, these jeans! Fuck!" Bella winced as she tried to get out of her pants as quickly as possible while Klaus' voice came out of her mouth. "Oh, this hurts, oh fuck!"

Klaus was amused as he merely stood back and watched. "Perhaps you should have changed into my clothes first?"

"I didn't ever have to do that when I changed my appearance before!"

"Ah, yes, but those were different girls with the same body build as you, love," he smirked as he watched himself topple over as Bella wrestled with her jeans. "I must say… this is hilarious."

"Stop laughing and help me!"

"Oh, do I really sound like that when I demand something?"

"Yes! But worse!"

Sighing, he pulled off her shoes and tugged on the jeans, surprised by the fact that she wasn't wearing any underwear and saw his junk stick out. "Bloody hell."

Bella growled as she snatched the bag and found Klaus' pants. She got to her feet and blinked at the sensation of something between her legs. Looking down, she raised an eyebrow. "Huh."

"No."

Wiggling her hips, she watched as the penis swung left to right, much like a pendulum and giggled before going a little faster, make it almost look like a helicopter. "Look at me! I'm a helicopter!"

"Bella!" Klaus growled at her. "This is not a time to play!"

"Oh, but it is!"

"Put some pants on," he growled.

She pouted as she did as she was told, before looking up at him with a mischievous look in her eye. "Want to fuck with everybody's heads later?"

"Myriam will kill you."

"Nah," Bella said as she pulled off her too tight shirt and got into the one provided by Klaus before getting into his shoes. "Now, you go hide in that cabin, I'll make sure Freya has a pet."

He scowled, then. "Are you sure this is going to work?"

"Yes," she sighed and pointed at the cabin. "Go, before I turn you into a woodlands creature and I might not be able to find you to turn you back." Bella then squeezed her crotch. "Oh, so you guys do like it when this happens!"

"Bella!"

"Kol's is slightly bigger."

"Bella!"

"I'm serious!"

"Bella!"

She was still pointing at the cabin and wouldn't stop until Klaus was inside with her stuff. Shaking her head, she started to stretch a little and crack her neck, changing her stance and hoped that she looked more Klausy than Klaus. Taking a deep breath, she decided to take a page out of Klaus' playbook and started to call out to Dahlia. "Dahlia! Meet me NOW!" Bella could hear how far her voice - Klaus' voice - carried, and was amazed by that. "I. Am. Waiting!"

"Niklaus, you have my phone number, why do you need to make such a dramatic spectacle out of everything?"

Bella turned to the voice and saw an older, brunette woman stand in front of her, looking pretty pleased with herself. She had cold, brown eyes and her appearance somewhat reminded Bella of Elijah. Dahlia was definitely their aunt. "Well," she said casually with half a shrug. "If this is my last moment as a free person, I figured I could do whatever the hell I wanted, don't you agree?"

Dahlia cocked her head a little to the side. "You have been fighting me on this for weeks, why the sudden change of heart?"

"I am tired of fighting and you have taken advantage of my sister for far too long. I shall take her place and you can bind yourself to me, allowing you to live forever without having to take a 100 year nap."

"And what makes you think that I am after you, Niklaus?"

"I am the Original Hybrid, I am the strongest of my family and in absence of children for you to take away from their parents, I'm saving you the trouble of having to-"

"Stop talking," Dahlia replied as she circled Bella, eyeing her curiously. "I don't want you. Granted, immortality will be a bonus, but you are nothing, Niklaus."

"I'm here willingly. Freya has been kept against her will."

"No, Niklaus, the reason I went after you is because there is a power surrounding your family that I have never felt before and I sense that that power has returned after a short absence, no doubt your solution as what to do with me."

Bella blinked. "My brother was dealing with his grief over his ex-girlfriend overseas, and yes, he has returned, but Kol is no more powerful than Elijah or Rebekah. It is me that you want."

"Oh dear child, I never said it was a family member," Dahlia said patronizingly. "Tell me, what is she?"

Well fuck. Dahlia wanted her. "None of your concern."

"Do not test me, Niklaus. You will surrender the girl or I will kill every single one of you! I will take what has been promised to me!"

"You were promised the first born children of our line," she countered angrily. "Which is preposterous and wrong. You can't change the rules simply because we are all vampires and cannot have biological children of our own."

"Oh, but I can," Dahlia flicked her hand to cast some spell, but Bella wasn't even flinching. "What's this?"

"Surprise, bitch," Bella said as she finally found the right amount of energy to turn Dahlia into an animal. Quick on her feet, she grabbed the rat by the tail. "Klaus! I hate rats!" She called out as she looked at the squirming black rat in disgust. "Please take her from me!"

"Oh no, love," Klaus said as he emerged from the cabin. "Your creation, your responsibility. You don't have to take her back with us, you know."

"I know that Silas and Amara haven't turned back but I don't trust this one."

"Then allow me to kill her."

"No," Bella said as she now cuddled the rat. "You stay away from her. She's a gift. For Freya."

Bella still hadn't turned back to her normal self when they arrived back at the compound. Klaus was quick to hide, allowing Bella to mess with everyone present, wondering how long it would take for them to notice that it wasn't Klaus they were dealing with.

Bella walked up to Freya and handed her the rat. "Your problem has been dealt with, sister," she said proudly. "I suggest you find a nice little cage for your tormentor to live out the rest of her days."

"How did-" Freya blinked at the rat and then at Klaus. "How?"

"That's for me to know, and for you to find out in due time," she smiled knowingly before walking to the nearest table and poured a large glass of bourbon.

"Nik, where's Bella?" Kol asked from his position on the couch as he drank from a servant after his shopping. "What is she planning?"

"She decided to go straight home," she replied as she passed Kol with a smile on her face, causing him to blink and then smile back at her. "Something about you not being all too happy with her choice of clothing."

"Right…" Kol dropped the servant and casually looked around. "So, all went well then?"

"Of course, what did you expect?" Bella had nearly the air knocked out of her lungs when all of a sudden she was up against a pillar with Myriam's lips on hers.

Kol blinked as his mouth fell open in shock. Oh, if only Myriam knew! Was he going to say something? Nah, this was actually quite hot. Besides, it was Myriam, not a complete stranger. "Oh my."

"What are you looking at?" Myriam shot at Kol. "It's not as if you've never seen this happen before!" She tugged on Klaus' pants with a grunt. "Off."

"Oh, yes," Bella grinned. "I've discovered something quite magical today," she said, immediately dropping Klaus' pants, revealing his penis. "Look what the guys can do!" She said as she started to wiggle. "Helicopter!"

Freya nearly dropped the rat in shock upon seeing Klaus' exhibitionism and his out of character behaviour. "Brother, are you on drugs?"

Elijah peeked out of his room before heading straight back in, whatever was going on, it was none of his business, despite his curiosity.

"No, really, Kol, this is awesome!" Bella pushed passed Myriam to walk over to him and he immediately shielded his eyes. "What?"

"I don't need to see your junk," Kol whined.

"Ah, but you know what I figured out? It's a bit smaller than yours! Poor Myriam!"

Myriam's eyes grew big. "Someone please tell me what's going on! Now!"

Kol pulled up Bella's pants and quickly fastened it, just in time too, as Freya cast a spell to send Bella flying across the courtyard. "Freya!"

"That is not our brother."

"Of course it's not!" Kol whined as he helped Bella back up to her feet, Klaus' face now adorned with Bella's signature pout. "This is my girlfriend playing a prank!"

"That was highly uncalled for," Klaus' voice sounded before revealing himself from behind a pillar, an amused smile on his lips. "But thank you, Freya, for your willingness to do everything to protect this family, how are you feeling?"

Myriam growled as she slapped Klaus across his face. "Cochon!"

"I didn't agree with her, love," Klaus rubbed his cheek in frustration. "This was all her."

"The hell it was!"

"I thought she wasn't a witch?" Freya questioned as she looked at the Klaus doppelganger. "This is impossible!"

Bella let out a whine as she turned back to her usual self, Klaus' clothes now too big around her. "I'm not a witch!" she retorted before looking up at Kol. "Let's go home, I need a hot bath."

~o.O.o~

They stayed in New Orleans for a few weeks, getting to know Freya better, but also to entertain the family, but both Kol and Bella were itching to go back to what they'd been doing previously; travel.

Bella wanted to check up on Damon and Stefan Salvatore, much to Kol's dismay, so they spent a week in Bella's little cabin in Mystic Falls before picking up Myriam in New Orleans to go to a convention in Las Vegas to let out their inner geek. Granted, Kol was pretty much a closeted geek, but he did like the superhero movies and he loved video games and Bella wanted to go to see the actors of her favourite TV shows in person. Besides, if Kol got bored, he'd hit the strip and do some gambling while the girls were geeking out.

On top of it all, there were some great resident bands and musicians in Las Vegas; granted, Kol wouldn't want to be caught dead at a Shania Twain concert, but Green Day was right up his alley, and he knew that Bella and Myriam liked some of their music as well.

He watched with pride as Bella and Myriam mingled with the 'fangirls' of that TV show Bella had been writing about for years, Supernatural, was it? He overheard them talk about their favourite stories and as it turned out, Bella was quite known in that circle; at least her pen name was, and she wasn't in the habit of revealing herself. Myriam knew that, so she basically outed Bella everytime her pen name was dropped.

Myriam and Bella went to concerts he didn't want to go to - Backstreet Boys, really? And back to the convention floors, but after a week of either trailing behind them and be bored, or gambling and eventually get bored, Kol had enough. Myriam was stealing his girl and that was going to stop.

He had arranged a surprise for Bella, which hadn't been easy to do even with compulsion because he had to find the right people first, but that had been alright, it stopped his boredom for awhile. He was pretty sure she was going to like this, as they had discussed doing something similar in Naples, Italy, before Nik called them back.

Kol put her into the passenger seat of the Jaguar convertible he had rented, and drove off. "Where are we going?" Bella laughed as she held on to the door as Kol was, as usual, demanding every ounce of speed out of the car.

"It's a surprise," Kol smirked, not taking his eyes off the road. "You will love it." It was the perfect night to do this; despite the temperature dropping quite a few degrees at night, they were going to stay warm in the comfortable tent he had people set up for them in the middle of the desert, off the beaten path. They were going to spend the night underneath the stars and their mode of transportation would be horses.

Bella's squeal upon seeing the ranch made his heart flutter. She was excited alright. "Oh, really? We're going horseback riding?"

"Amongst other things," Kol laughed as Bella started to bounce in her seat. "I know how much you love these creatures."

"Are you kidding me?" she giggled. "If it hadn't been for us living in the middle of New Orleans, I would love to have a horse of my own!"

"We could always move."

"No," Bella shook her head. "New Orleans is our home and we're close to the family. Sure, we could move to the outside of New Orleans but… nah. Then we'd have to travel a distance to reach the shops."

Kol laughed as he parked the car. "You're just lazy."

"Damn straight," she replied. "Wow, look at those gorgeous horses," she sighed happily as she got out of the car and breathed in the scent of horse manure and horse sweat. "The smell is amazing…"

"You're insane," Kol remarked, shaking his head. "Who loves the smell of manure?"

"Horse shit is different than cow shit."

"It's all the same to me, darling," he took her hand, greeted the ranch owner and headed straight for their horses; two tan Quarter Horses.

"Aren't we going to need a guide or go with a tour?"

"No, I know the way. I have been plotting and scheming while you and Myriam were having fun, plus, I have an excellent sense of direction."

The first part of their journey was on the path that the ranch used for their tours, but then Kol veered off and Bella followed. The scenery was amazing, the sun was setting and all these little animals came out to play while others disappeared. "I love how you keep surprising me, Kol," Bella smiled as she gently pat her horse's neck. "You think of everything."

"Where we are going, there's even a hitching post for the horses with food and water."

"My hero," she giggled as she gently nudged her horse into a light canter. "It's been years since I rode a horse, this is amazing, thank you."

"Oh, but we're not done yet," he grinned. "Keep up, if you can!" Kol galloped away from her and all Bella could do was follow, chase him through the canyon until he finally came to a full stop near a small clearing where there was a small tent with a burning campfire in front of it, and as he said, a hitching post with food and water for the horses.

He allowed Bella to settle the horses while he pulled a cooler out of the tent and started to cook the steaks over a rack over the campfire. Kol hated camping out; there was nothing comfortable or fancy about it, but he made sure that they were going to be comfortable anyway; only the best air mattress available in the tent, nice warm sleeping bags and good food. Bella liked the simpler things, and this was definitely that.

Bella sat down next to him and snuggled up before kissing him on his cheek. "We're going to spend the night?"

"Yes," he smiled at her. "Or would you like to return to civilisation?"

"No, no, this is great! Just you and me."

"And Mister and Disco."

"Yes, and them, but I doubt they fit inside the tent," Bella giggled.

"And I'm not into beastiality."

"Oh," Bella cooed as she peeked into the cooler and found a bottle of wine. "Outdoor sex! Underneath the stars!" Not finding any mugs or glasses, she opened the bottle and took a sip out of it and let out a big burp.

"Oh, that's not lady like at all." Kol laughed as he took over the bottle, drank some from it and produced an even bigger burp. "Oh, I'm such a child!"

"Yes!" Bella laughed. "Nobody can hear us here, Kol, let it all out!"

He wanted to leave the steaks and go for the first round with Bella, but he knew that she needed some food first; besides, they were premium steaks, it would be a waste to let them burn. For now, all he could do was will them to cook faster. Taking another swig from the bottle, he handed it back to her. "Good for you to say that, darling," he said darkly. "I'm going to make you scream so hard tonight."

She stared at him with open mouth. "Fuck."


	30. Chapter 30

After Las Vegas, Myriam went back home to join Klaus and back to her brothel, and Bella and Kol spent some time in Australia before Klaus once again, asked for their return to New Orleans. Not for Bella's special gift, but more because of some prophecy that had the family in its grasp.

"Prophecies suck," Kol explained to Bella as they were flying back. "You never know whether they're real or not."

"You know, I could just ask…" she said as she pointed to the sky, before waving her hands in general. "Surely someone out there would know."

"Ah, Nik has made it abundantly clear that for now, he wants to tackle things his way, likely to show the world that he still has balls and such and doesn't need to rely on his powerful witch sister or his brother's demi-goddess. No, he wants us in home so he knows we're safe," Kol shrugged. "But if it's truly a family wide prophecy as he says it is, isn't it better to stay away?"

"I'm sure he has his reasons," Bella said as she sniffed her sandwich. "I don't think this smells right…"

He took a bite of her sandwich and shrugged. "Tastes fine to me, darling, are you getting sick?"

"I don't think it's possible for me to get sick, though," she said, scratching her head as she watched Kol devour her sandwich. "No more tuna for me… at least for now. Damnit, I like tuna."

Kol snorted. "You had a similar thing with carrots yesterday."

"They were fine once I sprinkled some sugar over it, no big deal, I cook them in sugar all the time," Bella pouted before she reached for Kol's bacon and tomato sandwich and took a bite out of that. "What? It's only fair, you're eating my sandwich, I'm eating yours. Go feed on the stewardess if you're still hungry."

"Oh, I know you're not happy about returning just yet, darling," Kol ran a hand through her hair as she munched on his sandwich. "But usually when Nik makes such a request it's for a good reason."

"And if it's not for a good reason?"

"Then you can turn him into a puppy, leash him and have Rebekah place him with a nice family with small children."

Bella thought about that and liked the imagery of it. By placing him out of the family would lessen the temptation to simply turn him back. "Yes." And if Myriam didn't like it, Bella would turn her into an animal as well, perhaps a bunny so she could keep it in their home. Yes. Finishing her sandwich, she felt satisfied by their means of getting revenge for interrupting their exploration of Australia and laid down on the couch, stretching herself before putting her head in Kol's lap and sighing deeply. "Reality sucks."

~o.O.o~

The first thing they did when arriving back in New Orleans was to sleep. Niklaus wanted them to come straight to the compound, but Bella was still in a mood and the time difference was a bitch this time around. Despite her initial objections, Bella seemed to be comfortable in their own bed and fell asleep like a brick the moment her head hit the pillow.

The next morning, Kol woke up because Bella was cursing up a storm as she hopped around the bedroom with her jeans in her hands, trying to pull them up and close them. "Come back to bed, you beautiful potty mouth."

"No!" Bella said angrily as she gave up on the jeans and tried to find a bigger pair. "I can't fit in my jeans anymore! This isn't supposed to happen! I have to lose weight!"

"Darling, you look deliciously fine, we'll simply buy you a bigger size that does fit."

She angrily threw her jeans into his face. "You shouldn't have allowed me to eat so much, I still pretty much have the human physiology and I can gain weight, apparently!"

"Bella, you look fine."

Bella huffed as she plucked a summer dress out of her closet and got into that. "Fine. We'll have to buy bigger jeans, bigger bra's and some shirts, because some are too tight now. And I want to join a gym. We're going to eat healthier and-"

"Bella, you look fine, there's nothing wrong with you. You look healthy and well taken care of."

"So I'm fat," she stated, putting her hands in her sides as she looked at him. "You're such an asshole."

"Bella, it's alright," he finally got out of bed to wrap his arms around her. "We spent a lot of time in warmer climates, to retain a little bit of water is fine."

"Still not helping," she muttered as she pushed him away from her. "Get dressed, we need to hear your brother out."

"Welcome back!" Klaus greeted them as they stepped onto the courtyard. "Aren't you two tired of traveling yet?"

"Of course not," Kol smiled at his brother. "But I do hope that you have a valid reason for calling us back, we were having so much fun exploring the reefs and hugging Koalas!"

"Oh, the Koalas," Bella smiled. "I liked the Koalas."

"You would like to know, that in your absence, Elijah and my therapist have become lovers. She assures me it's not a conflict of interest, but I'm still not too happy about it," Klaus announced as he looked over to Cami and Elijah, who were sitting on a sofa both reading a book. "They're quite the boring pair."

"Hi!" Cami greeted them with a smile. "You guys look great!"

"Hey Cami, how are you?" Kol smiled at her. "You must have really lost your marbles if you fancy my brother."

"Nah," she smiled as she playfully punched Elijah's arm, who, in turn, looked slightly offended. "He's actually quite a hoot!"

Bella nearly jumped out of her skin when all of a sudden she felt Myriam's arms around her, hugging her tightly. "Hey Myr."

"So glad you're back! Look at you, wearing a dress and all! What happened to your jeans?"

"Oh, don't start, please," Kol sighed as he looked at her. "She's feeling a little bloated, couldn't get into her jeans and now she thinks she's fat."

Myriam huffed. "Don't be ridiculous, you're looking great! Healthy!"

"Stop saying that!" Bella grumpily said before she walked off to the kitchen to find some fruit to snack on. "Be glad that I'm wearing clothes so you're not subjected to my fattiness!"

"Wow," Myriam said as she looked at Kol. "What did you do to make her all grumpy and shit?"

"Nothing, I swear!" He defended himself. "She's been having these silly moods for a while now and although they're annoying, I kinda like it that her brain also gets very twisted." He sucked in a breath. "And she's testing my patience, but that's probably because she's due to having her period or something."

"Oh sure, blame mood swings on the one thing we can't control," Cami rolled her eyes at Kol. "That girl deserves a nice hot bath and a lot of chocolate."

"See, I knew there was another reason why I like to be a vampire," Myriam smirked as she sat down on the couch between Cami and Elijah, putting her arm around the woman. "No more female issues."

"No, but you do get slightly insane once a month, so there's no difference there," Klaus remarked as he watched Bella walk back in. "Freya! Come down so we can fill in my brother and his girlfriend!"

Bella sat down next to Kol and looked at him as she angrily peeled her banana and then took a bite out of it. She kept her eyes on him as she slowly chewed, swallowed and taking another bite.

"Is that all you're going to eat?" He was looking to see if she had more fruit on her or a sandwich, but it seemed that it was only the banana. "Darling, you have to eat something."

"I am, and this is all I'm going to eat until lunch, yes, because you buying me all the food has gotten you in this mess in the first place," she retorted as she took another bite of her banana.

"Nik, where's our sister?" Kol asked his brother, missing Rebekah at this meeting.

"She's off gallivanting about with her new boyfriend, no doubt. She still has to introduce us to him, but I believe she will do so in due time. She's only getting a pass out of this meeting because she knows what's going on," Klaus replied as he poured himself a drink and saw Freya's frame move out of the door and onto the courtyard. "Now, the only reason I wanted the two of you home is to make sure you are safe. I do not wish for you, Bella, to use your gifts on anything that's going on - we can handle it. I merely wanted you to be safe, and as only Kol can enter your apartment still, your apartment is the safest place for you to be."

"I think I can take care of myself, Klaus," Bella said with a snort as she tossed her banana peel into a bin. "In fact, we both can."

"Of course, but please humor me and don't go anywhere until this is all over?"

"What is _this_?" Kol demanded, glad that Bella started to perk up a little again. Grumpy Bella could be so unwilling.

Klaus shared a smile with Elijah, who rolled his eyes. "Do you remember our time in France after we escaped Mikael for the first time?"

"Vaguely," Kol replied, a scowl on his face. It had been the first sign of the holy trinity that were his brothers and Rebekah, with Kol and Finn being on the outside. Finn for being a bloody mother's child and Kol for being erratic and thirsty all the time. "We spent some time at Court de Martel and we had to leave because of my habits attracting Mikael's attention. That wouldn't have happened if you'd just allowed me to go off on my own and split up as I suggested in the first place."

"I see we remember this event quite differently," Elijah finally said, not looking up from his book, still distancing himself from the conversation. "But you are correct. It's also the place where Niklaus, Rebekah and I sired our first vampires."

Kol was annoyed now. "If you're going to tell me that the moronic Martel's and Lucien are still alive after all this time… then consider me surprised. I never expected them to live this long!"

"They are in town, yes," Klaus replied. "For now, everything is quite civil, although Myriam would nothing more than to rip out Aurora's throat."

"That's it? You wanted us here because you're afraid of them?"

"It's more complicated than that. There's a whole history there, that I shall not bore you with, however, they came with a prophecy that could very well mean the end of our family," Klaus sneered. "And you know how I don't believe in prophecies!"

"It's very brutal," Freya spoke quietly. "I've confirmed the prophecy and the visions that Lucien's witch showed Klaus and Elijah. The family will fall when the prophecy comes to fulfillment."

"Which is what, exactly?" Kol asked.

Freya had a serious look on her face, recalling the images she had seen in her brother's mind. "How a year from now, the family is lost and with our losses, we're seeding the beast that is to come."

"And you believe in this? Niklaus, the only thing that can kill us is gone. Burned. There's no White Oak anymore," Kol chuckled. "I know you're paranoid, but this is taking things too far."

"But what if there's another way to kill us? We've made powerful enemies, we have powerful friends and in this day and age, I believe that even a brilliant scientist could kill us with a virus if he's determined enough," Klaus replied, taking a swig from his drink. "I believed that prophecies were simply stories made up to scare children, but this one is about us. We are stronger together, brother, this is why I needed you back."

"Well," Kol smirked as he relaxed in his chair. "Why won't you cozy up to Aurora and find out more about this so called prophecy?"

"Over my dead body!" Myriam growled. "He's not going anywhere near that lunatic!"

"You shouldn't worry, Klaus," Bella spoke softly as she looked at him. "Nothing's going to happen to you, not as long as I'm around."

"That's very kind of you, Bella, but as long as we don't know if this is true or not, I don't want you to do anything," Klaus replied kindly. "I merely wish for your safety as well as Kol's."

"Perhaps this is the moment to mention that there's an ulterior motive for your return as well," Elijah said as he looked at Freya. "Freya believes that you, Bella, could very well mean the end of our existence should you be taken from us."

"Well that's stupid," Bella muttered. "After all I've done for you?"

"You are a demi-Goddess, are you not?" Freya raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I know," she said when she saw the surprised look on Bella's face. "And it only took me the effort to reach out to a couple of Quarter witches to hear that. You have the power to destroy the world if you wish for it. I don't understand the faith and belief my siblings have in you for not destroying them for the monsters that they are."

"Sure they are monsters, but they're in control and if you think that they aren't, then who the fuck are you?" Bella said angrily as she got to her feet. "You're the latest addition to this family and they accepted you as one of their own, because by blood, you are. They trust you, and therefore I must trust you because that's what they want, but to call me a danger to this family? How dare you?"

"Bella, that's not what she meant," Klaus calmly said, looking up at her from his seat. "We don't see you as a threat, at all, but Freya's right. There is a chance that our enemies could take you and subdue you. They could force you to harm us. All Myriam and I want is for you to be safe, with us, under our protection, do you understand?"

"I'm not going to listen to this," Bella said as she turned to walk out of the courtyard. "You're being narrow minded and stupid and assholes," her voice started to break as she felt hurt, and overcome with pain. "How dare you!"

Kol got up to run after her, but he was stopped by Elijah, who had finally put down his book. "Kol."

"Get out of my way, Elijah," he said venomous.

"You have to listen to reason."

"Reason?!" Kol huffed, turning around to face the rest of his family. "Reason? You don't know what reason is, you never have. To agree with our eldest sister about Bella, you call that reason? After all that Bella has done for this family, after all that she's been through, you dare to fear her? Never in a million years would that lovely, sweet girl hurt someone. She doesn't like spilling blood and she won't. Ever," he said angrily. "Nik, I understand that you're afraid of this prophecy, perhaps too afraid to see _reason_ but you just upset a very powerful being who now might choose not to help you out next time you're in trouble. She's your friend, for God's sake!"

"I've been telling him this," Myriam pointed out. "But his paranoia is a bitch and not even Camille can talk him out of it."

"Yeah well, try harder. Bella and I are leaving New Orleans in the morning, she doesn't deserve this," Kol spat before he grabbed Elijah, tossed him across the courtyard and headed to Bella. He found her crying on the sofa, hugging a pillow. He sat down next to her and pulled her into his arms. "Hey, it's okay," he softly said as he gently ran his hand over her hair. "Don't worry about them lot."

"I'm not good enough," she sobbed. "What do I need to do to be good enough?"

He hadn't really dealt with a crying Bella before; she wasn't the crying type, she bottled it up until she'd explode in a fit of anger - which she did very well, and he secretly loved it when she was angry, or she dealt with things rationally. And now, he wasn't quite sure what to do with her. It appeared that her family had truly managed to hurt her this time, despite Niklaus and Myriam being her friends - or, there was a possibility that there was something wrong with her.

And he didn't like to think about that. Because if something was wrong with her, Hades wouldn't be too far away to take her away from him and it was not going to happen.

"Bella," he softly said after a while, still with a sobbing Bella in his arms. "You need to calm down and check yourself because you're acting very much unlike yourself and I fear what will happen if this continues."

Bella looked up to him with her tearstained eyes, shortly stopping her from sobbing, but as she thought about his words, she started to cry again. "No, I don't want to go, I want to stay!"

Kol sighed deeply as he shook his head. He needed help. His quick thinking wasn't failing him and he smiled at her. "Darling, Myriam hasn't seen your beautiful apartment yet, wouldn't you like her to come over and see?"

"Yes, Myriam can come in," she sobbed as she held on to him. "But your family will never ever set foot in this apartment, you hear?"

"I hear you," he said softly as he quickly texted Myriam to come over and thankfully, she did. He scooped Bella off the couch and planted her in Myriam's arms. "Your problem."

"What!"

"You're far better equipped to handle a crying girl than I am."

"She's your girlfriend!"

"She's your friend!"

"And what are you going to do?"

"Pummel reason into Niklaus," Kol said angrily before he leapt out of the window and rushed to the Compound, leaving Myriam alone with Bella.

Sighing, Myriam set Bella down on the floor and made her look at her. "Snap out of it, you're being ridiculous."

"You hate me too?" Bella asked with a small voice. "You think that everyone is right and that I pose a danger to you?"

"No," Myriam sighed as she pushed Bella's hair out of her face. "I think they're all a bunch of dicks who are too paranoid to think clearly, that's all. They still love you, Bella, but it's in Klaus' nature to be fearful of anything or anyone more powerful than him. Freya… well… she's a prototype Mikaelson who had a difficult century… of course she's frightened with a demi-Goddess in our midst, but she doesn't know you the way that we do. She'll come around." Myriam bit her wrist and offered her blood to Bella. "Whatever ails you, should be gone after you have some of this, I promise."

Bella scrunched up her nose. "I'm not sick."

"You may be and not realize it, drink up," Myriam said before pushing her hand against Bella's mouth. Much to her surprise, Bella struggled against her after one sip and she was forced to let her go as Bella ran off to the toilet. Soon after, she could hear her vomit. "Okay, so maybe you're under some sort of spell!" Myriam called after her, staying well clear of the bathroom. "We'll have Freya to check you over!"

"No!" Bella almost screamed at Myriam. "That bitch isn't going anywhere near me!"


	31. Chapter 31

Bella refused to leave the house for a couple of days, mainly because she didn't want to go to the compound and face the family again. Even though Kol insisted that they hadn't meant it the way that she understood it, she didn't want to go because Myriam wanted her to be checked out by Freya to see if she was under the influence of some magic spell making her act out of character.

Bella wasn't spelled. She figured that she would be natural cleansing of spells seeing as she could cleanse them of others, and had been immune to Dahlia, so she knew she wasn't spelled. But something was wrong, alright. She was throwing up a bit more often and everything hurt, she was sick and blamed Australia for it.

There was, of course, another option. One that she didn't want to think about but had to consider. Gods were fickle and this one God was mischievous. "Hey, Kol?" She carefully got his attention; he wasn't in one of the best moods lately, likely because of her, and she felt guilty about it.

"Yes?"

"Could you go to the pharmacy for me and pick something up?"

Kol looked up, meeting her hopeful gaze. "Are you in pain?"

"No," she snorted. "Uncomfortable, but…" Bella sighed as she got up and made her way over to him. "Things aren't adding up. Well, they are, and I want to rule this possibility out because there's no way that we've asked for this."

"What are you talking about, darling?" He asked as he put down his blood bag and pulled her into his arms. "Freya could-"

"I am not spelled, Kol," she punched his arm. "And I'm tired of hearing her name. I want to rule out something else that could have like a major impact on our lives because Gods can't be trusted."

"Hades?"

"I told you about his reward for me, and how he'd only act when we asked him to."

"You're pregnant?"

"I sure hope not!" Bella laughed. "Go to the pharmacy and get me a pregnancy test? Please?"

Kol paled at that question. "What? You want me to go? Why can't you go? And don't be ridiculous, all we need is Freya-"

"Don't!" She put her hand over his mouth and glared at him. "We're going to figure this out, the non-magical way. I'll go to a human doctor if the pregnancy test is negative and it better be or else I'm going to kick some God's ass."

"Go get it yourself. I'm not going to buy you a pregnancy test. No way."

"Buy me three, just to be sure."

"Bella, you're not pregnant. If you were, I would have picked up on an extra heartbeat by now," he assured her, kissing her on her forehead. "Whatever is going on, I'm sure it has a reasonable explanation."

"Please humor me?"

"Get it yourself," he repeated. "I'm a thousand year old vampire and I draw the line at buying you pads for when you're having your period. There's no way in hell that you're pregnant, it's not possible."

Bella thought for a moment. "If we are, you get to punch a God in the face for breaking a deal?"

Kol sighed deeply as he tossed his almost empty blood bag in the trashcan. "I'll be back, but you better make it up to me!"

"We can have sex?"

"Deal!" Kol said as he almost ran out of the apartment. Part of him wanted to go outside of New Orleans, where nobody knew him, another part of him wanted to be home again, fast, mainly so that he could have his way with Bella; it had been some time since they had some fun, ever since she figured she didn't look pretty anymore. But she didn't look pretty, no, she was absolutely beautiful and he hated it that she had such a low self esteem again.

He had been beating himself up about it, replaying their trip in his mind to see where things might have gone wrong, and he couldn't find a specific point in time, because she was always beautiful to him, no matter how she looked. Granted, he liked her best without her clothes on. But that was just how he was.

Kol decided to take his chances with the one closest to them; nobody expected a Mikaelson inside a pharmacy as Niklaus would usually compel someone to get things for him, but a pharmacy? They were never sick! Kol could pick up Bella's pads while doing groceries, which was normal, but this? No. Absolutely not.

Oh, Kol could compel himself a willing victim to pick up what he wanted, but like Bella, he wasn't using much of his own abilities other than to survive, and buying pregnancy tests wasn't for survival. It was to give his girlfriend a piece of mind. He needed to do this himself.

What if Bella were pregnant?

He'd definitely punch a God after she'd call one down to answer to his accusations.

What if she were pregnant?

Sure, part of this _reward_ would be that Bella would give birth to a tiny human, no hybrid, no god powers, an ordinary- nope, not even that. The baby would be a Mikaelson. A witch. A first born Mikaelson, powerful, like Freya. Oh bloody hell. It would be a nightmare to take care of a magical child.

Bella wasn't ready to have a baby; she didn't mind children, as long as they stayed well clear of her, but wouldn't snap at them when they did approach. She simply didn't like them.

As for him? He was an overprotective vampire with rage issues. Yeah, that was going to work well - enraging over a dirty diaper or something. Oh, he so hoped she wasn't pregnant. With everything going on, he sure hoped she wasn't pregnant; it would only make matters worse for the family.

"Nik, I know you're spying on me," he muttered after sensing his brother from somewhere behind him. "You'd better not be taking pictures and sending them to your girlfriend."

"I see you're in the mood for something else," Klaus noted the condoms below the pregnancy tests. "Is this a new kink of you two? Sex with a rubber around your cock?"

Kol thought for a moment. It was best to take them as well, for future sake. Gods couldn't be trusted. He immediately grabbed a box and nodded. "Yes, Bella wants to know what it's like to have someone inside of her wearing a condom, well done, Nik."

"How is the little spitfire doing? Would you like me to send Freya over or?"

"No Freya. Please, no. I offered, but I'm afraid that Bella will turn her into a rat to join our dear Aunt Dahlia in the cage," Kol replied angrily. "At this point, there's no telling what she'd do, no, I need to get a pregnancy test."

Curiosity peaked, Klaus took a few steps closer to his younger brother. "Also something she wishes to try out once in her life?"

"Something like that," Kol didn't take his eyes off of the variety of the tests. There were simple tests, merely stating whether someone was pregnant or not, there were those that would say how long, or even what the gender would be, there were those that weren't actually pregnancy tests but more a prediction of when it was best to have sex, and everything boggled his mind. Which one did he have to choose? "Help me."

"Oh, no, this is not my area of expertise."

"Then call Myriam."

"Brother, she's a vampire, she wouldn't know… although I wouldn't be surprised if she had a bunch of them at her brothel for her girls, just in case."

Kol fought the urge to punch his brother in the aisle and draw more attention to them. "Then for fuck's sake, call Cami."

Klaus dialled his therapist's number and put her on speaker. "Hello Camille."

" _Klaus, what can I do for you?"_

"Kol is wondering what's the best pregnancy test he could buy his girlfriend."

" _A what now? He's a vampire, he doesn't need a pregnancy test unless Bella's been unfaithful to him."_

"She's not been unfaithful!" Kol growled angrily. "I would know, we've been together every day since our reunion!"

" _Then why need a pregnancy test?"_

"Humor me."

Cami audibly sighed. " _You're wasting your money."_

Kol snatched the phone out of Klaus' hand. "It's my money to waste. Help me or so help me God, I will break your neck!"

"Kol," Klaus said calmly, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder with enough force to snap him out of his anger before nodding to the Walmart employee standing next to them, looking frightened.

"Um, can I help you find something?" the associate asked, her voice shaking from the presence of the angry male before her. Her name tag said her name was Kalypso. How pretentious.

"Don't mind my brother, love," Klaus said calmly. "He's merely freaking out; his girlfriend sent him out to buy a pregnancy test and well… our mother didn't raise us that well and we have no idea what to get. Of course, our friend on the phone isn't helping at all, either," he replied as he pried his phone out of Kol's hand and disconnected the call.

She nodded, eying the upset man before focusing on the wall he'd been staring at. "We have a selection to choose from. If she's far enough along, it wouldn't matter which one you choose. Popular brands are First Response and Clear Blue. This one may give a positive reading earlier than the others," she explained, handing him the pink box. "And it has a coupon for $3 off."

"Thank you, I'll have three of each, then. She can sort it out for herself when I can get home."

At that, the associate couldn't help but to laugh. "You really wouldn't need more than one. Each kit has two or three devices to test in the box for multiple attempts. But, whichever your result, good luck! I'm sure everything will work out for you even if it was unplanned."

"Thank you, love, you've been a great help," Klaus smiled at her before handing her a 100 dollar bill. "This is for your efforts."

She stared at the money he practically shoved in her hand. "Um, we aren't allowed to accept tips or anything… but it's okay. Just don't name the baby, if it's positive, anything stupid like Kaleb or Rebekah. My brother is an asshole dating some stuck up bitch named that way."

Kol then punched the wall, leaving a hole in it without blinking.

"I think you might need that 100 dollars now," Klaus said amused as he handed her another bill. "That one's for your manager."

The girl nodded, glancing wide eyed at the angry man before scurrying off.

"Well," Klaus said lighthearted. "I suppose our sister's nursing skills paid off."

"Shut up," Kol mumbled as he headed to the register, nearly threw the items on the counter and impatiently waited for the total.

The employee, with the name tag Breanne, looked at the guy nearly smashing her counter in half. "Honey, I do hope those are for your sister, because you two won't need a pregnancy test, you do know that, right?"

Kol growled lowly as he handed her a 50 dollar bill, stuffed the items in his pockets and headed out, Klaus following right behind him. "I'm itching to kill something."

"Very well," Klaus replied casually. "You need to blow off some steam before you return to your impossible girlfriend. Let's go and play with some wolves, shall we?"

~o.O.o~

Bella paced around as she watched all six sticks. Oh, she wanted to be sure and had used them all. If there was one thing that had lingered from sex ed classes was that these pee sticks could be unreliable and at least this way they had a good chance of getting the right answer. And she hoped it was 'no'.

The only reason why she had told Kol about Hades' so called reward was that she didn't want to have secrets from him. She had also told him that she wasn't going to collect that reward for a very long time because she liked spending time with Kol and didn't want to share their time with a child.

Bella was well aware that all Mikaelsons would have loved to have offspring, that their vampirism was the one thing that kept them from having families of their own and that they had made peace with it. She knew that Kol would be a great father, though. He was playful and fair, caring and loving and so knowledgable. Their child would be a witch and what better way was there for it being raised by someone who knew so much about magic?

Kol would be an awesome dad.

She wouldn't be an awesome mother. Bella never knew what to make of kids; they were messy and sticky and drooling all over the place. Germs. Loud and not to mention, destructive. Kids weren't her thing, but she had entertained the idea to accept Hades' reward in a couple of years, when she and Kol were together for longer, to make sure that she wouldn't end up alone with a kid.

Oh, that would be the worst thing. Him leaving her. The family turning their backs on her and the child for not being good enough. Pretty much like they were doing now, they were afraid of her and wanted her close so they could keep an eye on her. It angered her so much; she rarely acted upon her anger, she wouldn't even hurt a small creature, so why were they so afraid? It wasn't as if it would be easy to contain her, she had so much power coursing through her veins and it still scared her shitless. One wrong move, one twitch, one wrong thought, and all would be lost. Gone. Poof.

What if she'd poof a child out of existence without any means of returning it?

No, Bella wasn't pregnant, couldn't be pregnant. Not for a very long time and if she were, she was going to kill Hades. Or at least made a valiant effort; this wasn't part of the deal they made. Not at all.

"Bella! Come on! Let me in already!"

Kol's voice shook her out of her thoughts and realized that she should have allowed him access after her peeing on the sticks so they could fret together. She unlocked the door and opened it.

"Well? Anything yet?" he questioned as soon as his eyes laid on her.

"No," she sighed as she put her arms around him. "What do we do if I am, though?" Bella asked with a small voice.

"We face it like we do everything else we do. Plus, it won't be like it won't have any family. Everyone will want to have a hand in this, I'm sure. Have you even looked?" Kol murmured as he looked over her head to the pieces that she spread over their bed. "But before all that, we hunt down your uncle and find a way to kill him or imprison him like Nik enjoys doing with my siblings and I."

"Oh, don't worry, if the things show that we're having a baby, I'm going to call for his ass to come down here and then you can punch him."

"Start yelling," he said as he turned her around and showed her that all six sticks had two pink lines on them.

"HADES!" Bella yelled. "Get your stupid ass down here you mother fucker!"

"Excuse you," Hades' voice sounded before appearing. "But I have never fucked my own mother! I do not even believe Zeus has done so either, considering his philandering ways."

"You fucker!" Bella let go of Kol and went straight for Hades and pounded on his chest. "You absolute fucker! This was not what we agreed upon!"

"Calm down, Bella, getting angry isn't good for the precious cargo you're carrying," Hades smirked and gently pat her head as she continued to hit him. "Stop it, you're embarrassing yourself," he said before sighing and flinging her onto the bed, landing her safely on the mattress. When he turned around, Kol planted his fist in his face. "Oh, well that hurt," Hades said, rubbing his jaw.

"I feel much better now," Kol said nodding before helping Bella up. "Thanks, darling, I needed that."

Bella huffed as she narrowed her eyes on the God of the Underworld. "Explain yourself."

"Why?" Hades shrugged. "As you know, you Earthlings have been our playthings for millennia, why stop now?"

"Dude, we're family."

"Dude, you're fun to play with!" Hades grinned and casually waved the sticks away into the trashcan. "Look, I know you wanted to tell me when you guys were well and ready for this responsibility, but you wanted to live your life as human as possible, did you not?"

"I did say that…"

"And it's shown in your actions as well, you haven't used any of your abilities other than to rid New Orleans of the evil witch and before that, only to protect yourself against the witches here and help your family. I might not be around all the time, but I do see what you do, Bella," Hades reminded her. "I'm always keeping an eye on you because I'm so proud of how you're handling things. Now, humans usually don't have a choice either, when they have unprotected sex, so… I made you guys have a little accident. You're welcome."

"Take it back."

"Oh, but that's not how it works," he grinned. "You're pregnant, alright, and guess what? In a little over six months you'll be the proud parents of two healthy bouncing baby boys!"

"Okay, I want to wake up now," Kol muttered as he rubbed Bella's back. "This is not happening. This is what happens in your stories, not in real life, Bella, wake me up."

Bella stared blankly at her uncle and slowly shook her head. "No. Sorry. This is like our very own The Shining movie adaptation. I should kill Damon for showing that movie to me."

"Congratulations!" Hades smiled. "Don't worry, they'll be human, not freaky hybrids," he said as he disappeared with a poof, leaving them in a sea of Cornucopia's in all sorts of colours.

"We're doomed," both Kol and Bella chorused as they looked at each other.


	32. Chapter 32

Kol found it strange now that Bella knew what was going on, her mood significantly improved and she knew how to deal with it a lot better. They talked about their little problem for a day or two, not leaving the apartment and only ordering food in. Getting rid of the mass of cornucopias in their bedroom was hell, but bringing some over to Nik's house and donating the rest to a nursing home - upon Bella's request, worked out well enough.

They decided to deal with this new situation the only way they knew how; face it head on and try to embrace this gift, because vampires simply were not able to conceive. Kol did want to share this with the rest of the family as soon as possible, but Bella wasn't quite sure if she was ready for that just yet.

When they did leave their bubble, they went out to buy two kindles so they could buy books on pregnancy and read from those, brought them back to the house and joined the family for lunch. Much to Kol's dismay, Lucien Castle was there as well. "Oh, great," Kol muttered as he protectively put an arm around Bella.

"Aha, the loon! I'm surprised that you're still out of your box!"

"Lucien, always a pleasure," he said as he made sure Bella had a seat as far away from Nik's first sire as possible before sitting down himself. "Bella, meet Lucien, Nik's little accident after we were first turned."

"Hi," Bella said as she reached for a roll and some toppings before she started to build her sandwich. "Uhm, I am sorry for my mood a couple of days ago. Must have been the jetlag or something, I don't know." She was still not happy to be at the Compound because it was obvious that most of the Mikaelsons were even more wary of her now. For the moment, at least, she believed that Cami and Myriam were on her side with this. Which was good.

"That's alright, love," Klaus mused. "Did you and Kol have fun playing human the last couple of days?"

Bella blinked in surprise and looked at Kol for an answer.

"Yes, Nik, thank you for that question," Kol quipped as he took his glass of blood and drank from it. "It was quite the experience for her, but I already told you this, no need to bring it up again."

"I for one, thought it was cute," Cami piped up. "Hey, you guys should come to Rousseau's tonight, we're having a live band playing and it's going to be great."

"Sure," Kol smiled. "Bella and I could use some fun."

"Great! I have this new cocktail I want you guys' approval on, seeing as you've been all over the world lately, likely tasting so many different things, I could use your tastebuds!"

Bella took a bite out of her sandwich and nodded. Good music was always fun, and bars did serve soda and water, she was going to be alright.

"I'm a bit worried about Bella's taste buds though," Myriam laughed as she nodded to Bella's sandwich. "Jelly and bacon?"

"It's delicious," Bella blinked at her friend. "Seriously, you need to try it. It's salty and sweet!" She held out her sandwich for Myriam to take, but she scrunched up her nose. "Your loss," she shrugged as she took another bite.

"I thought you wanted to lose weight?"

"I was just bloated… I still am. Who cares? Kol loves me in any shape or form."

"I must say, Niklaus," Lucien nearly purred as he sat next to his sire. Bella thought he sounded like a stuck up asshole with marbles in his mouth. "I never believed that your family would be this expansive or this varied. You've got your vampire mate, Elijah has a human toy and I don't know what Bella is, but she's quite something, too."

"And mine," Kol growled. "If you come anywhere near her, I swear I will end you."

Lucien simply smiled at Kol. "You see, Nik? It's a good thing that I am here because that lunatic still hasn't learned to control himself and behave. I'm here to protect you, remember? I'd just box him just to be sure of your safety."

"Oh, I can't do that, Lucien."

"Why not?"

"Because of various reasons; one being that I don't own any of the stakes at this point in time; Finn's got lost, Elijah's destroyed and Rebekah has hers on her person. I don't know what Bella did with Kol's, but she's keeping it well hidden," Klaus said amused. "Don't fret, Lucien. Kol won't hurt you."

"Speak for yourself, Nik," Kol scowled as he drained his glass of blood. "If he lays a finger on her, he's mine."

"Kol and Bella are quite territorial over each other," Elijah mused. "Best not to poke the proverbial bear."

When Freya walked in, Bella scooted her chair closer to Kol's and made herself another sandwich. The oldest Mikaelson meant well and all, Bella knew that, but it still hurt that she believed that Bella would have something to do with the prophecy - Kol didn't even believe it was real, and neither did she. It was merely something to mess with people's heads, for sure.

Oh, she knew that family came first, and family was the reason why they were back in New Orleans, so that Klaus could keep his family safe, and for Kol to help out anyway that he could, but right now, Bella wanted to leave until all of this was over. She knew that Kol wouldn't leave, so she had to stay. She wasn't going anywhere without him. Not anymore. Not again. So she kept her mouth shut, and she was going to keep her head down. Nothing was going to compromise the safety of the worms inside of her now and she was safe with Kol.

It was best to check herself again now that things in the family had yet again shifted and not in her favor. Quiet and observing in their presence, but herself when home with Kol. They were supposed to go shopping that afternoon for clothes that would fit her more easily and could grow with her. It was a stupid grown up thing to do, they had both agreed while pledging at the same time not to become boring. No, boring was just that.

"Brother," Freya addressed Kol in her most pleasant voice. "I think it's time for you to stop playing house. Could you help me with unraveling this prophecy? Perhaps teach me a spell to speed up the process?"

It was almost as if Freya had somehow known that he and Bella had plans that afternoon. Bella understood why they needed Kol's help, but she wasn't happy about it.

"Well, actually… Bella and I-"

"Kol, she could really use your help," Elijah implored him. "Think of it this way; the sooner we are able to debunk this so-called prophecy, the sooner we can all go back to our lives."

Kol knew this. But he had plans with Bella. Damnit. Turning to her, he gently rubbed her back. "What do you think? Shall we help Freya this afternoon instead? I mean, it's not as if what we need is that pressing right now, is it?"

"Actually, I'd prefer it if she'd stay clear of our process," Freya piped up, worriedly. "Perhaps it would be wise if, for now, our extended family stays clear of these meetings. Just in case."

"Over my dead body," Myriam said as she slammed her hand on the table before pointing it at Freya. "Get your fucking head out of your ass, Freya Mikaelson. Blood related or not, now that you're not connected to your stupid crazy aunt, I can kill you with my pinkie. We are not second ranked citizens here, get that through your thick skull." Myriam then wickedly smiled. "For all we know you're the architect of this prophecy and the cause of the end result, should it be real, of course."

"I am not!" Freya breezed.

"And why would I believe you? After all, you _are_ a Mikaelson, very capable of deception and deceit. Who knows? You might be hiding in plain sight!"

"Enough," Klaus said annoyed. "You've made your point, Myriam."

"Have I?" Myriam huffed before she looked at Kol and Bella. "Kol, don't you worry about Bella, she and I will do whatever needs to be done today for you guys. I'm due for a nice, relaxed afternoon anyway. I'm not even in the mood right now to go to work! I need retail therapy."

"Oh bollocks," Klaus sighed as he fell back in his chair. This _therapy_ was going to cost him.

"Come on, Bella," Myriam said as she pulled Bella out of her chair. "We're going shopping. Sorry Cami, we would have invited you but you're on your way to work anyway, aren't you?"

"Yep," Cami nodded before she pecked Elijah's cheek and followed the other two girls out. "So I'll see you tonight?"

"Oh, yes," Myriam smirked as she put an arm around Bella and pulled her closer to her. "Fuck the men, really. Us girls need to stick together." Cami waved them goodbye and once Myriam was certain that the woman was out of earshot, she turned to Bella with a smirk. "You have a secret."

"No, I don't," Bella shook her head as she looked at her friend. "And it's fine, Kol and I can go shopping another day, it's not that important."

"Tough. I want to shop and I need an accomplice," the vampire replied before she dragged Bella off into the direction of the shops. "I'll find out your secret anyway."

Bella decided to humor Myriam and go shopping with her, but refraining from buying anything herself; she was merely along for the ride and company. It was a shame that Myriam wanted to stay in the Quarter, but on the other hand it was a good thing; Bella and Kol had wanted to go to a promising store in the Garden District, according to the internet it was a hip and cool store for maternity wear; something Bella was going to need by the buckets and she wasn't going to go for the obvious mother look. No way. Perhaps it was too soon to look for maternity clothes, but the website looked amazing and it was best to buy some now, so she could grow into them as she'd get bigger. It would be less conspicuous that she was pregnant, too. Or, that's what Bella's mind told her. She didn't want to buy bigger normal jeans. She refused. Parading around in a pair of Kol's pants wouldn't be an option either.

If Myriam had wanted to shop in the Garden District, Bella's secret would have definitely come out.

"Alright, spill," Myriam said as they were having something to drink at Jackson Square, in the sun, open space and the sun on their faces. "What's going on? I know you don't like shopping but today you're taking the sulk to a new level."

Bella pouted as she took a sip of her bubble tea. "I'm sorry," she sighed. "I… At the moment I'm very upset with one of my cousins… or uncles… or whatever they are to me."

"How so?"

"In the old days they liked to fuck around with people. Either literally or figuratively. Sometimes even both ways. You know the mess the Greek Gods were," she said dismissively, waving her hand. "They've stopped influencing people for major events, but occasionally, they do smaller things just for kicks. I mean, those who are still paying attention to the world underneath them, I mean. The others could care less."

"Ah, something like tricksters or sprites, huh?"

"Sort of," Bella nodded. "Although what this particular God pulled is no small feat. It's no joke and it's impacting others as well with this prank. Because it's not a fucking prank, it's messing with someone's life and especially with what's going on now, it's not fair." There was the anger again. Bella didn't know whether to laugh or cry, or hit something out of frustration. "I feel… violated - which I'm not, by the way. Not in the physical way. A decision that was very personal was taken out of my hands - our hands."

"You're not leaving again, are you?"

"Nah," Bella smiled at her friend. "Don't worry about that. It's something else entirely and the reason behind it is because of the way that Kol and I decided to live our lives so we're fair game like the rest of the people who roam this planet."

"You're scaring me now, please tell me. I promise I won't tell anyone else."

She thought about it. It would be nice to have at least someone else in the now until Kol and her were ready to share it with the family. But Bella also knew that Myriam could be overly excited about things. On the other hand, Myriam was also a very powerful ally right now when it came to Bella's position in the family now that Freya had it out for her for no reason. "It's still very fresh, Myr, we're still trying to get used to the idea ourselves, so please…"

"For God's sake, CeilingCat," Myriam rolled her eyes at her. "Spill."

"Hades isn't just the God of the Underworld. He's mostly known for it, because that's what people fear and they usually connect his softer side with another relative because he barely used it. Hades can make the land fertile; much like Demeter and whatnot. Guess what he did?" Bella sighed as she took another sip of her bubble tea while the cogs in Myriam's head continued to spin. "He offered me this as a reward, only when I was ready and only when I would ask him to, but instead, he said something along the lines of; 'You live as a human, you have happy little accidents like a human'."

"Happy little accidents?" Myriam echoed slowly, a frown on her face before she gasped in horror and shock. "Noooo!"

Bella slowly nodded as she bit her lip. "I'd always imagined that maybe in a couple of years, you know… but not now. Now is like the _worst_ timing. Ever."

Myriam eyed her over and of course, everything made a whole lot of sense now. Bella's behaviour; her slight weight gain, the jokes around the compound of Klaus having caught Kol at Walmart to buy tests and condoms under the guise of 'human experiences'... "Oh Bella, you don't have to worry about the timing, everyone will love your little bundle of joy as it'll be a Mikaelson! It's the one thing the entire family hates, not to be able to create blood related offspring, to expand their family… Sure, Rebekah will be quite envious of you, and I have to admit, I wish I could give Klaus a child of his own but your little baby will be so loved by its Aunts and Uncles!"

"Oh, don't worry," Bella let out a breath of relief. She had imagined Myriam to squeal like a girl on steroids and hug her senselessly, but was happy that for now, Myriam refrained from doing so. "There will be plenty of babies to go around…" she said as she pat her belly. "There are two of them inside of me."

Myriam's eyes nearly fell out of their sockets. "You are going to be huge!" She squealed.

"Kol and I have a lot to think about, yes," Bella blushed. "And we are. The first thing on the agenda is to move because while the apartment is big enough for a small family, there are too many stairs. Like the one you have to take before getting to our place. It's what we wanted to look at this afternoon. That, and to get some fashionable clothes that I could grow in to…"

"Will they be supernatural babies? Like hybrids?"

"No, thank fuck they're not going to be some weird hybrid and inherit some of our abilities," Bella chuckled. "They're going to be human. Witches."

"Maybe you and Kol should move back to the compound," Myriam smiled at her. "At least for the duration of your pregnancy and then until the babies sleep through the night. Being pregnant isn't easy, let alone with two babies. And when they're born, you're going to have to need all the help you can get. You can have the rooms at the back on the ground floor, I'll have some workers come in and make sure everything is safe for you and your babies and, because I know you guys love your privacy, have them construct something that will hide your rooms from public view."

"Myr…"

"Discuss this with Kol, please. It's only temporary and it'll give you more time to find something you two would love to live in together, or even to buy land and build your own dream home. You're absolutely right about the stairs being a hazard for you when you get bigger. Or when you have to carry two babies up the stairs. We'll still leave you alone, give you all the privacy and independence you need, but you'll be surrounded by family."

"I don't want-"

"Bella…"

"Freya."

"Oh, don't worry, I'll keep that wench far away from you," Myriam snarled. "I'm this close to snapping her neck anyway, but we do need a witch in our family… or at least one who likes us. She'll pipe down eventually, I promise." She then hugged Bella. "You know that Klaus will likely say the same thing, you know, once you and Kol tell him what's cooking."

Bella sighed and nodded. "Fine, I'll discuss it with Kol, but only if you promise me all the things you just offered."

"Of course!" Myriam huffed, finally letting go of Bella. "I'll steal Elijah's pocket book and find a good contractor and have a meeting with him once you and Kol decide that it's the right thing to do and yes. This will be my project. For you." She planted a big, sloppy kiss on Bella's cheek, earning her a scowl. "Oh, I can't wait to find out what's cooking!"

"Two boys."

"Ugh, Mikaelson boys are the worst!" Myriam said dramatically.

"Hey! We're both dating one!" Bella laughed. "I'm sure they won't be as bad, their parents aren't maniacs."

"Says who?" her friend replied innocently. "A demi-Goddess and an Original vampire raising babies sounds pretty insane to me!"

Bella let out a snort and took another sip of her bubble tea. "Kol and I will tell everyone when we're ready, I promise."

"Don't wait too long, the building is old, I want to make sure that whatever the contractor does to it stays in the same style."

She stuck out her tongue to Myriam and raised her tea. "Here's to never growing up."


	33. Chapter 33

After her afternoon with Myriam, Bella texted Kol that she was going home and order pizza. She wasn't in the mood to go to the compound knowing that Freya would be hogging Kol and refusing Bella's inclusion in whatever they were doing. She figured that despite cancelled plans, Kol was having a blast for being able to work with his sister on some magic things and that was fine.

Kol texted her back that he was going to be a while longer, which she expected, and made herself comfortable on the balcony with her laptop and the pizza and simply started to write on a new story she'd started after finally finishing the other one. It was a one shot where Bella Swan, the cheap copy from Twilight, was a fierce warrior princess in Ancient Norway. She had been taken as a child and raised by a clan of vikings, the Cullens, and fell in love with one of the boys from the villages around them.

This boy had quite the handful of siblings, as was normal for those times, and as their relationship progressed, the long lost sister of the clan returned and she believed that Bella was a great evil that would be the downfall of the family. One night, Bella snuck into the home of the family and abducted the sister; tying her up in her cave and slowly killing her over the course of weeks. It started with peeling off the skin and allowing it to heal enough to form crusts, before chipping those off too. She'd drag the sister off to a salt bath and throw her in it.

She'd take toes, pinkies and ears and leave them at the house while still hanging around with the boy, helping with the efforts of looking for their sister, but of course, she was never to be found. At night, Bella would continue her torture before finally getting bored and ripped out the girl's heart.

Bella sighed happily and immediately published the story, not even going over it for small mistakes or anything, she just needed to get it out there. Feeling a lot better, she finished off the pizza and relaxed, waiting for the reviews to roll in, no doubt they were going to be hilarious. Almost immediately, she could hear Myriam's evil cackling coming from across the street and grinned. "You're welcome!" She shouted from her spot on the balcony.

Myriam appeared on the balcony across from Bella and was still laughing her ass off. "It would have been better with more blood!"

"Next time!"

"I'm going to hold you to that!"

Bella laughed and shook her head as she took a sip of her lemonade and grabbed her kindle to browse the store for books on pregnancy. Better to start early than to freak out later, right? _What to do when you're having two_ , yeah, that sounded great. She managed to read the first chapter before she got distracted by the reviews that kept pinging on her laptop and they were all amusing as hell. Some demanding more of this warrior Bella, demanding her to slaughter the Cullens and then the Volturi and maybe even the wolf pack in the most gruesome of ways.

Myriam's cackling could still be heard from across the street, no doubt she was reading the reviews as well.

Bella had a feeling that the coming months would provide so much story ideas that she was going to spam her readers, but that was fine, she still felt she needed to make up for the fact that for them, she had disappeared for two years.

When Kol hadn't returned by midnight, Bella debated on going over to pull him away from whatever he was doing, but decided not to. She wasn't a controlling girlfriend. Kol wouldn't leave her and he'd still be on her side when he returned. Bella packed up her things on the balcony and brought it inside before climbing the stairs to her bedroom, undressing and making herself comfortable in her nest. It didn't take long for her to fall asleep.

She woke up to heavy snoring from beside her in the middle of the night and hit Kol with a pillow to stop him before getting out of bed to pee. When she returned, he was wide awake. "Why did you do that?"

"You woke me up," Bella shrugged. "Did you have fun with your sister?"

Kol huffed as he pulled Bella into his arms and pulled the covers over them. "I must admit, Freya is very powerful but everything we've tried to validate this prophecy even further turned to nothing. It's nothing to worry about, but then again, my siblings always find something to fret about. There has been a lull in conflict, hence why they want to do this themselves, without your help."

"So it's boredom?"

"Yes, and no," he sighed as he ran his fingers through her hair. "The prophecy might simply be a distraction for something different and I suspect it has something to do with my siblings' first sires."

"Great," Bella sighed with a yawn as she shifted a little to be more comfortable.

"How was your afternoon with Myriam?"

Bella huffed. "I'll tell you in the morning, go back to sleep."

"Well, I'm awake now."

"I'm not!"

"But you're talking," he laughed and kissed the top of her head. "Tell me."

She sighed as she shifted a little more, throwing her leg over his for more comfort and warmth. "Myriam noticed something was wrong or different. Usually I get something I like while we're shopping or I'm more engaging. I was trying hard not to show her anything had changed."

"She figured it out?"

"Eventually, yes," Bella looked up at him. "I had to tell her, Kol. She's my friend and she knows how to keep a secret and-"

"Hey, that's okay," Kol softly kissed her. "It's a good thing you've told her, at least that will save me from having to deal with your women issues."

"You're such a jerk."

"And proudly owning that title, thank you very much," Kol grinned as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I never believed my brother to be this dim, but he still believes that we're doing a human experiment."

"Or he already knows but keeps quiet about it, humouring us."

"Or that," Kol scowled.

"I told Myriam about our plans for moving out and into something bigger and a ground floor entrance and she…" Bella sighed. "I don't like the idea, but I think for our sanity and safety, it's a good idea."

She didn't need to use the words to tell him Myriam had suggested they'd move back into the compound, temporarily or not. He had been thinking about this when he was with Freya. Bella was likely good for another few weeks with climbing the stairs, but once she'd start to grow bigger, it'd be a hazard, especially when carrying a bag or something else. Not to mention, once the babies were born. But he also knew that other apartments or houses were likely not in their taste as of right now. And Bella deserved nothing but the best.

Not only would it please Niklaus to have the both of them under his roof for extra safety, the family would be a great help once the babies were born, or even during Bella's pregnancy. The compound was big enough for the entire family. He didn't mind living there as his siblings generally left him alone, he moved out because Bella wanted him to. "Wait, you wanted me to move out and move in with you."

"Yes. Like I said, I don't like the idea but it's a great idea," Bella wasn't surprised that Kol already knew what she was talking about. Great minds thought alike, after all. "Myriam offered to call in a contractor to make our own little corner of the compound, redo a few of the rooms on the ground floor and likely build a false wall to hide us from plain sight and give us more privacy. We might be in over our heads."

Kol laughed at that. "Darling, we are in over our heads, but we're going to be alright. However, I do think it's a good idea for us to temporarily move back in with Nik. It'll give us some more time to find a home of our own that we feel good with to raise a family."

"Yeah, about that…" She lightly touched his chin with her index finger. "I don't want to raise a family in the Quarter. At least not right here. I want our babies to know what grass is."

"You're quite demanding, aren't you?" He softly kissed her. "We'll have some time to decide where we'd want to live in New Orleans, there are parks a plenty." He then let out a snort. "Don't tell me you wish to move back to Mystic Falls."

"No!" Bella shook her head. "That's the worst idea ever. Especially with stupid Elena still walking around. The boys I can handle but Elena? Hell no."

"Good, because I'll have you know that once everyone knows we're going to have babies, they'll be all over us and they wouldn't want us to leave New Orleans ever again for a long period of time."

"Screw them. They're our kids, not theirs," Bella replied. "Besides, even if we'd move to Mystic Falls… if Klaus is truly done with messing around with Elena, who's still a freaking vampire, you can just kill her, can't you? It would free up my boys as well, to hopefully do something more worthwhile with their lives."

Kol was surprised to hear that. "You want me to kill Elena?"

"Why not?"

"We could go now and do it," Kol said excitedly. "Please?"

"We're in bed," Bella pointed out.

He sucked in a breath and nodded. "Good point. And we're awake… I don't know about you, but I need a little bit of exercise before I can get back to sleep again."

Giggling, Bella crawled on top of him and straddled his waist as she pushed her hair out of her face. "I think that's a great idea."

~o.O.o~

Kol told her to go to the Garden District by herself as he was going to spend more time with Freya and his other siblings, promising Bella to tell her more about what they were doing that evening, because she _was_ included. No, Bella could scout out the store and if it was really that great, he was sure going to return there with her.

Frustrated, Bella stayed at home instead. She wanted to do this with Kol, and not without him. After cleaning the house and making a groceries list, she decided to see if Helios was back and called him. Grandfather or not, he had raised her after all, and she felt like she had to tell him.

" _Heya Bells! How are you doing?"_

Bella smiled upon hearing his voice, for some reason it made her feel a lot better. "I'm glad to hear you're back in cellphone range," she replied. "I still have to thank you for the beautiful apartment."

" _You deserve it, sweetheart. Hades could have handled things differently."_

Bella hummed in agreement. "He's a jerk and not because of what he did before, but what he's done now."

" _Do I want to know?"_

"I think you'd want to hear this, yeah… I still don't know how I feel about this."

" _Give me five minutes and I'll pop over."_

"Really? You'd do that for me?"

" _Five minutes, make sure there's coffee."_ Helios then disconnected the call and Bella looked at the phone for a moment, stunned that Helios was willing to come over like that. Charlie never liked leaving Forks, but then again, Helios was Charlie and likely a character. Plus, if you had a beach in your own house, why leave at all?

Five minutes later, the coffee was still brewing and Helios poofed in right next to Bella, causing her to jump back and look at him in a daze. "I have a front door!"

"I don't need one," he retorted, a playful smile on his face.

"Yeah well, I want Charlie, my dad. I don't want Helios. Go poof out and use the front door!"

Observing Bella's antics, he merely laughed and did as he was told. After Charlie rung the doorbell, Bella made her way downstairs and opened the door, Charlie grinning in front of her. "Took you long enough, Bells," he said as he hugged her.

"Thanks for coming," she muttered in his embrace. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too, sweetheart," he replied as he let go of her and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. "You like your new apartment?"

"Oh yes, very much," Bella said as she followed him up the stairs. "It's close to everything and it's safe and beautiful. I love the woody look of it, too."

"Good job with the fairy lights," Charlie replied with a snort as he came upstairs. "Oh, coffee!" His attention now directed to the kitchen. "You won't mind if I pour myself some, right?"

Bella sighed. This still wasn't Charlie. It was almost as if Helios had given up on being Charlie after her falling into her powers, but right now, she had wished that he was still this stoic person. She sat down on the couch and watched him move around as she waited for him to come and join her.

When he eventually did, she scooted over to him and put her arms around him. "How are things in Forks?"

"Everything's returning to normal. There were a few cases of missing children, but we've found them safe and well. As it turned out, they had found some old tunnels deep in the woods and decided to camp out there. And then the entrance collapsed. They should consider themselves lucky that they were found," he replied with a shrug. "I've been giving lectures on safety and stuff in schools. Quite boring."

Bella smiled at that and breathed in her father's scent. It smelled of his brand of detergent and his after shave, something she had really missed. "I should have come to Forks…"

"Nonsense, your life is here," he said as he put his arm around her. "But perhaps I should try less to be the absentee parent in your life, even though I'm not really your parent?"

Bella smiled at that. "I'd like that, but please, no shenanigans. My life is pretty crazy as it is already."

"You know, if you tell them to stop messing with ya, they will listen," Charlie said as he took a sip of his coffee. "How many have you encountered so far?"

"How many?" Bella blinked at him. "What do you mean by that?"

"Everyone's curious about you, aren't they popping in and out of your life just to see how you're doing and who you are?"

"Thank God they're not," Bella said surprised. "Or if they were, I'm glad they don't make themselves known! The Ancestors would go crazy if there are more Gods in the city and I don't want to appease them again after I promised them that nothing would… please please please don't tell me that they're already here."

"Okay, I won't," Charlie smirked. "Plausible deniability! Although you should be able to pick up on them."

"No, because I asked Hades to turn down the whole feeling aspect as it's connected through seeing and hearing ghosts and moving them on and shit. Don't want that. Don't need the extra… no. I don't want to know and they can all just fuck off, you can tell them that."

"Alright, sweetheart," he kissed the top of her head. "Now, why did I come over? You sounded pretty upset on the phone."

"I'm not upset. Well… maybe I am," she thought for a moment. "I'm 30 percent in love with this already, 50 percent scared shitless because both Kol and I are totally not equipped to handle this yet but also knowing we can't do anything about it and hope that whatever comes next won't end up resenting us for being bad for them and 20 percent extremely pissed off at Hades for violating a deal we had," Bella rambled, as she kept her arms around Charlie.

"You made a deal with Hades? The same Hades who doesn't like leaving his little cozy world down below because it's nice and quiet Hades? The one who you should be pissed at for taking you away from your new family Hades?"

"Yep."

He sighed deep and tiredly pinched the bridge of his nose. "Look, I may have lost my pull somewhat when it comes to dealings about you… but what the hell did he do now?"

"It wasn't really a deal, more like a reward and…"

"You negotiated."

"And he broke it."

"Alright, what is it? Tell me so I can punch him."

Bella let out a breath and all of a sudden felt awkward for telling her father that her vampire boyfriend's seed had been made fertile again and that she was now pregnant without having said boyfriend by her side to tell her dad. "Hold on," she said as she got up and swung open the doors of the balcony. "KOL!"

Before she knew it, Kol was standing with her on the balcony. "Damn, woman, calm your titties," he rolled his eyes at her before sensing her father in the livingroom. "Oh, hell no."

"I called him, I wanted to have my dad's cuddles…" Bella pouted as she looked at him. "We need to tell him. And then tell your family. I think that's for the best."

"Why?"

"Because I'm still emotionally stable enough to handle their craziness and I don't think I'll be able to when we wait a few more weeks," she softly kissed him. "I know we're both not ready to accept what's happening and that we're scared shitless, but maybe telling a parent will help with it all."

"He's not your real father."

"No, but he raised me," Bella pointed out, rubbing his arm. "Please?"

"Yeah, alright," Kol followed Bella into the living room and nodded towards Helios. "Good to see you again, Helios."

Charlie shook Kol's hand. "Charlie. Bella wanted Charlie."

"That's even worse," Kol scowled as he shot a look at Bella. Charlie had guns, no doubt he'd shoot him if he'd been able to. She was right, he had been given it some thought, especially after her telling Myriam. Telling the family would be so much better, there'd be so much of a support system - after the initial fall out, likely - but they wouldn't have to do this alone. The whole family would be involved, and he felt safer with his family behind them despite despising them sometimes.

"Now you're both scaring me," Charlie said, looking at the two people in front of him. He wasn't used to unusual pairings, not in his family, but an Original vampire and a Demi-Goddess? He was proud of them for making this work, and work so well even after the crap that his cousin put them through when he took Bella away for training. It's something he should have done, really, but he liked his little girl being so happy.

"You need to sit down," Bella said as she gently pushed Charlie back onto the couch. "So basically… after Hades took me for me to fix my own mess and then train me, he admitted that he was a jerk and said that if Kol and I were ever ready to start a family that I should tell him that so he can make 'the land fertile again' as in, make Kol's seeds happy swimmers again."

"Of course," Charlie sighed. "People often tend to forget that he could do that. If you can make the land fertile again, why not-" he stopped dead in his words and then blinked in shock. "He broke his word? You're expecting?!"

"Surprise?"


	34. Chapter 34

Charlie blinked at her. "Are you- are you sure?"

"Uhuh," Bella said a little bit unsure. "Did six pregnancy tests, too. Just for shits and giggles, we never believed they could actually be positive…"

He hummed as he gently put his hand on her stomach. "The way Hades' ability works is that he can revive dead seed. So he revived them after you and Kol had some fun time… about… 2 to 3 months ago?" Charlie looked up to his daughter/granddaughter and faintly smiled. "You sure you're ready for this?"

"No," Bella huffed, a slight chuckle following that huff. "But we can't change that now, can we? Kol and I have gone through a lot and I'm sure we can handle this," she smiled at Kol. "We're going to be the best, craziest parents, ever."

"Yeah, we are," Kol grinned. "But seriously, was Hades right about the amount of babies?"

"Twin boys, definitely," Charlie confirmed with a nod. "Human, too. The reason why Hades hasn't been stopped from doing this is because the babies will be human, and not some freaky hybrid. Seeing that Kol was a witch, they'll be witches and very powerful too, they'll be a force to be reckoned with and likely warrants another chat with the regent and ancestors that you'll be able to control them - you should likely bind their powers or have a dark object that's dampening their abilities until they're old enough to know what control is."

"Can't you do it?"

"Sweetheart, I know I'm a God, and we Gods can do a lot of stuff, but this is magic. We don't do magic."

Bella pouted.

"Now, I doubt you've allowed Hades to tell you this after you've scolded him and hated him for surprising you like this, but Bella, you are vulnerable right now," Charlie said as he removed his hand from her. "You're still immortal, but you won't have access to your powers, if you do, they're not reliable. You can't protect yourself or the ones you love. All of that goes to protecting your two boys. Normally this wouldn't happen but it's because of who you are with and because of those you choose to surround yourself with - just as a precaution to them. It's your own mind that's done this, too."

Oh, she didn't like to hear that. While she hadn't used her powers in a while, apart from dealing with Dahlia, Bella did like it that she was able to protect herself if needed; stand her own ground in the midst of all these vampires and now her head basically decided to forgo on the gifts to protect her babies? That wasn't fair. Immortal or not, Bella didn't like to feel helpless. "Well crap."

"You're still immortal, Bella," Charlie laughed as he reached for his coffee again. "And your family can protect you, they _will_ protect you," he said as he narrowed his eyes on Kol before looking back at her. "You have to trust that others are capable of taking care of you as you've taken care of them in the past. Let go of your trust issues, your control issues, and only focus on making sure you're making it through this pregnancy sane, happy and healthy."

"Don't worry," Kol eventually said, upon seeing the look on Bella's face. "My family and I will not allow anything to happen to her, we've never allowed that and we never will." How could she think that he'd let anything happen to her? That she wouldn't get the care that she needed? Hadn't he proven enough that he would fight the entire world for her if he had to? Kol had thought he had fixed the trust issues between them. And maybe it had but she was no longer trusting his family. Well… Elijah has always been a dick, Freya only made it worse. It was them Bella was worried about, wasn't it? "In fact, Bella and I are going to move back in with my family, just temporarily, so they can help us during her pregnancy and after the babies are born."

"You're not going to stay in the apartment?"

"Too many stairs," Bella shrugged. "The place is big enough but the stairs that I need to climb… I mean, I'm immortal but I'm not as strong as Kol and stuff. Safety."

"Are you going to move?"

Bella smiled at Kol then. "I want them to know what grass is. And trees."

"But that's not for something to discuss right now, we still have time," Kol said calmly. "We first have to figure out this whole pregnancy and parent thing."

Charlie nodded. "Parenting is hard," he eventually said. "But do remember that it's your body. You and Kol are the parents. They will be and they are your children and nobody else's. Draw your line in the sand and don't allow others to cross that line, okay?"

"Okay."

"You can do this. The both of you. No matter what others may tell you," he looked at Kol. "Because you know that if you tell your family that you're becoming a father, they will tell you you're not equipped. You are."

Kol let out a breath and nodded, Charlie had pointed out a vulnerability that he hadn't told Bella about; his family would indeed tell them - him - that he's not sane enough for a child, let alone two children. His family would always find a way to bring him down, to diminish his existence, even now that he had Bella back. He was the stupid, insane brother, no matter what Kol did to prove otherwise. "Thank you."

"Look, I may not be a real parent to you both, but I am always here to talk if you need me to. I'm your biggest champion, don't you two forget that."

Bella hugged Charlie and smiled up at him. "See? Charlie is so much better than Helios. More human."

"Alright," Charlie laughed and kissed her cheek. "Got it. More humany, less of the God stuff."

"Yes," Bella nodded. "And thank you for telling us what we needed to hear, _dad_." It was almost as if there was a cloud lifted. Sure, she and Kol were quite alright with this situation, but she could already noticed that Charlie was exactly what they both needed right now. They could do this, and they were going to be awesome and Charlie had faith in them. Both of them. Their biggest fan.

"I'll be coming by more often, I promise. But before I go, anything else you want to know?"

Bella thought for a moment as she was still holding on to him and felt the color drain from her face. "So… magic doesn't work on me, what about traditional drugs? Like… if I go into labor and shit?"

"Sorry, sweetheart, I think you'll have to find a different way to deal with the pain. You have about five months to figure it out. Twins are usually premature."

Bella sighed and nodded, squeezing her father a little and then let him go. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome, sweetheart," he said as he planted a kiss on top of her head and shook Kol's hand. "You're going to do great and I'll make sure that at least our side of the family won't come and interfere with your lives. You have enough on your plates as it is."

And, without a goodbye or see you later, Charlie poofed out.

~o.O.o~

Klaus had found it somewhat endearing that his brother ran to his girlfriend the moment she called for him across the street. Reminding him of a little puppy. Kol had been acting strange ever since Klaus had run into him at Walmart. Well, no, not run into him. Klaus had followed him because of his brother's strange behavior, and curiosity never killed the cat unless it was on his last life.

And now Myriam was acting strangely. She had asked if she could do a little remodeling of a part of the compound to make it less open and a bit less… ancient looking? He wasn't quite sure what she meant by that, but she wanted it to be her project and her plans were small enough - only minor adjustments - that he'd allow her to make the modifications only if Kol would agree to it, seeing as his bedroom was part of her plans. The funniest part was that he had already given his permission - somewhat - and that she was going to meet with a few contractors while she was at work.

Whatever was going on, Klaus was certain that he'd find out soon. It wasn't as if his mind wasn't occupied with other things. Such as Lucien Castle. His first sire. Although he was a lot of _fun_ , Klaus couldn't help but to be slightly wary of him. Yes, Lucien wanted Klaus alive because he didn't want to die, but there was something else. For instance, why was his company killing wolves in the Bayou? Was it just for fun? The Bayou had been home to the wolves for centuries, why change that now?

Elijah was dealing with his sire; Tristan. Klaus had never liked him; he was an even bigger pompous ass than Elijah was, and Tristan's sister Aurora was batshit crazy. She was slightly interesting when she was still human, but not everyone survived immortality with a sound mind. Aurora was proof of that.

And then there was Freya. The latest addition to their family and even though both he and Elijah were smitten with her, Klaus couldn't change her mind about Bella, mainly because she had a point there. Oh, Bella would never hurt them, but there was a possibility that his enemies would be able to make her turn on them, become the beast of the prophecy. But Bella wouldn't hurt them. He knew this. Why was he so worried about her turning on them then?

He'd been TrashPanda with Myriam for Bella for years. He knew Bella. He knew what made her tick. She'd been such a great influence on Kol and keeping him occupied and happy. Bella was the best thing that had ever happened to his family - apart from Myriam, of course. This was ridiculous. Bella wasn't a threat.

If anything, Freya was a threat.

Leaning over the railing, he watched the servants set everything ready for the family dinner tonight; Bella and Kol were coming over and he had instructed the cook to make Bella's favourite foods. Different kinds of pasta, salads… everything. Her favourite kind of wine. Her favourite dessert. No expense spared, only the best for his favourite human - immortal. Klaus wasn't even sure what Freya's favourite foods were, he made a mental note to ask.

Myriam appeared next to him and softly kissed him. "Penny for your thoughts?"

He smiled at her and pulled her into his arms. "Welcome home, love, how was work?"

Myriam huffed as she relaxed into his embrace. "There was an issue with some famous actor," she started to explain. "He's a regular and usually we have no issue with him at all, but somehow, this time around he managed to pass through the screening process with drugs in his system. It's a good thing Gracie recognized that he wasn't normal and called for security, he was nuts by the time they reached her."

"You should have eaten him."

"Nah, we now have blackmail material," Myriam grinned. "As a reminder for him to behave and come in clean."

Klaus softly kissed her. "I love your wicked mind, love. Now, did you make some headway with contractors?"

"Oh yeah, met one that I really liked. He can actually do the work in two weeks."

"What are your plans, exactly?"

"Break a few walls… dry walling… make it look a little more modern on the inside but still keep the outside the same, don't worry," she smiled at him. "Trust me, you will like it, especially when hearing the reason behind the remodeling. Are Bella and Kol coming over for dinner tonight?"

"Yes," he looked at her, intrigued. "What are you up to, woman?"

"You will like it, trust me," she purred as she pressed herself against him. "Can I interest you in a short tryst before dinner?"

"Because you ask so nicely," he claimed her mouth with his, hard, before dragging her into the bedroom. Yes, Myriam was the right person to take his mind off of deep thoughts. Definitely.

~o.O.o~

Kol couldn't help but feel a little nervous about this. He could tell that Bella was too, but he was nervous. Despite Charlie's positive reinforcement, Kol was certain that his family were going to be jealous, outraged and hurt and generally not happy, but happy that there was going to be a blood extension to their family nonetheless.

It was likely that they were going to curse Bella's family, much like he and Bella had, but for different reasons. With Freya's suspicions and fear directed towards Bella, no doubt she'll change her tune from blaming Bella to be the Beast to their unborn children.

They should have stayed away from New Orleans. No, they shouldn't. If this prophecy _was_ real - Kol and Freya hadn't found anything about it at all, no mentions in books, no way of proving it with spells or whatever, but they weren't entirely unconvinced either - if this prophecy was real, the family needed Kol to do the dirty work because face it, that was what he was good at. Following orders like a good little drone.

Bella had absolutely nothing to worry about - aside from Freya's suspicions and a little bit of jealousy coming from Myriam and Rebekah. For years the girls had expressed their desire to have a family of their own but because of their immortality it hadn't been possible. No, Bella had nothing to worry about because she was carrying Mikaelsons inside of her.

She'd be even safer if they'd neglect to mention that Bella was basically powerless now.

"Hey," Bella put her arms around him right before they were about to leave. She looked up at him with a big smile on her face. "We can do this. No matter what they say, we can do this. Let them throw their fits or whatever they're going to do. Like us, it's likely they all just need some time to adjust to the idea. We'll be fine."

"Quite right," Kol softly kissed her. "Yes. Let's stop being insecure about this. It's happening to us, with us, and they're merely along for the ride."

"No parent is perfect, good thing that our kids will have one full good parent out of two imperfect ones."

"Funny."

"I know," she grinned and playfully slapped his ass. "Come on, let's get this over with and then retreat back to our lovely apartment so we can finish watching that season of Supernatural."

"I hate that show," Kol groaned.

"It's research!"

"Keep telling yourself that," he laughed. "It's a ridiculous show."

"Research!" Bella grinned as she kissed him. "Alright, let's go and face your family, it's going to be alright. We can do this."

"Yes."

Bella's mouth watered when she smelled the food as they walked into the courtyard. While Bella preferred home cooking, sometimes Klaus managed to find the most perfect cook for her non-dead tastebuds. "Pasta," Bella smiled widely at Kol as they continued to head towards the dining room. "I am so hungry!"

"How can you eat?" Kol laughed. "I'm blooming nervous."

"It's food," Bella pointed out with a pout. "Can't I be excited about food especially when it seems like my favourite meal?"

"Several of your favourite meals, love," Klaus greeted her with a smile. "I know you have had a rough couple of weeks and I wanted to cheer you up."

"Oh, Nik, don't," Kol pinched the bridge of his nose when he sensed Bella becoming overly emotional. "She's fine," he put an arm around her and gently squeezed her shoulder. "Aren't you, Bella?"

"I'm good," Bella smiled as she hugged Klaus. "Thank you! You shouldn't have made such an effort!"

"All the effort is the cook's, love," Klaus smirked as he accompanied his brother and his brother's girlfriend to the dining room. "But I do have to admit, I have ulterior motives with this feast. I hope that it will make up for how I believed Freya's insulting ideas of you having to do anything with this blasted prophecy. I was wrong."

She smiled at him. "I get it, old habits die hard."

"Doesn't mean you have to give him a free pass," Myriam huffed as she hugged Bella and then Kol. "Come, sit."

Soon, everyone fell back into chattering amongst themselves while Bella remained quiet, happily eating the food in front of her, taking a little bit of everything before going back for a second helping. This wasn't because she was pregnant; she doubted that she'd ever 'eat for three' but she did love her food.

Cami was engaging Freya, a lot. Bella was wondering what was going on there, but so far, Bella observed that Freya was a lot calmer towards her. Rebekah was slightly pissed because her boyfriend _Kaleb_ , had broken up with her for some unknown reason. Well, the reason wasn't unknown, Kaleb was simply not cut out for keeping up with Rebekah. She was sighing that she might just go back to Mystic Falls and patch things up with Matt. Bella liked that. Matt was a good guy and he knew how to handle Rebekah because she liked him very much too.

Bella felt sorry for her and made a mental note of asking Rebekah to go on a girl's day out once Bella felt up for more socialisation - likely after she and Kol dropped the bombshell that there were tiny Mikaelsons joining them in the family next year. Bella didn't particularly like girl's days out, but a good massage sounded so good right now - just to get rid of the tightness of her skin which wasn't because of bloating but because of the two humans she was growing inside of her.

"What are you thinking about?"

Kol's whisper in her ear sent pleasurable shivers down her body. "Forget Supernatural… I want a massage."

Kol laughed at that. "Alright spaghetti monster!"

"Hey! Don't insult the spaghetti."

"I'm not insulting the spaghetti," Kol threw his hands up with a smile on his face before looking at his brother. "Any more on the nasty trio?"

"Ah, let's not discuss those imbeciles while we're still eating, brother," Klaus said playfully. "Don't want to spoil the good mood! We're having dinner with family, let's enjoy that."

After dinner, and dessert, Myriam suggested that they'd have a nice glass of bourbon in the courtyard so she could tell everyone what her plans were for the back three rooms at the courtyard. This news came to a shock to Rebekah and Elijah, who were already offended by the idea that their home had to get some remodeling done. There wasn't anything wrong with the rooms; apart from Kol's bedroom, they weren't being used on a frequent basis, nobody was living in them, so what were her plans, exactly? Klaus didn't need a painting studio as he painted in his study and his paintings were carefully kept in the basement.

"Basically the rooms are going to be like a small home, bedroom, proper bathroom, small kitchen, living area…" Myriam gestured to the rooms. "The contractor will knock out a wall or two, reinforce others, for safety from outside forces," she then grinned as she looked at the Mikaelsons. "You know, if two of you knuckle heads decide to toss each other across the courtyard, the people in those rooms will remain safe."

"You're not going to rent them out, are you?" Elijah asked appalled.

"Ohhh, theories!" Myriam mused, taking a sip of her drink. "No, Elijah, but please keep guessing. No one will guess correctly!"

"Is your women's shelter overflowing?" Rebekah wondered. "You could just knock down a wall between Debauché and the animal shelter's second level, you know. It's not like I'm using it…"

"Great idea for expansion! We definitely have to discuss that," she replied as she pointed at Rebekah. It was a brilliant idea. "I'd never bring girls home with me. It's almost like bringing my work home." She looked at Klaus, but he remained silent. "Now, as for decoration, nothing much will change. All the change will be on the inside and won't hurt the way the courtyard looks. However, perhaps a few tall plants to hide the rooms from view wouldn't hurt."

"Myriam, I don't need a mini apartment, I'm fine with the room my brothers have given me," Freya eventually said. "I'm flattered, but-"

"Oh dear child, it's not for you. No, you can fend for yourself," Myriam countered, still not liking Freya that much. "But if you do wish for your own space, no doubt Klaus will give you the money to do so."

"It's for us," Kol eventually said, after his siblings had given up on guessing. From the look on Cami's face, even she hadn't seen this answer coming. "Bella and I are going to have to temporarily move back in while we deal with the changes in our lives and until we've found the perfect house here in New Orleans."

"But your apartment is beautiful," Klaus pointed out. "Not that I have seen it from the inside, but wasn't that a part of the deal you and Bella had, that if you were going to back together you'd be together in her apartment?"

"Circumstances changed," Kol shrugged. "Especially since in a couple of weeks Bella will start to have difficulties climbing the stairs to our home."

"What's going on?" Elijah wondered out loud, watching his brother and his girlfriend curiously.

Klaus just looked at the two while the cogs in his head worked over hours. "Impossible," he eventually exclaimed as the puzzle pieces fell into place. 'Human experiences' his ass, but it was still impossible.

"Ah, not with some Greek family members," Kol pointed out. "Although I'd rather had him not surprise us with this as he was supposed to wait until we'd tell him we were ready."

"You can't be serious," Klaus wasn't quite sure whether or not he was supposed to be happy or angry with whomever did this. While he loved Bella dearly, and Kol, he wasn't convinced that the both of them were ready for this responsibility. On the other hand, their family was large enough to help them out and it did mean more family. Little ones. Ones that were his blood and he'd be able to see grow - unlike Marcel. While the boy had been young, he never really turned out the way Klaus wanted him to be.

"Do you think I'd joke about not being able to fit into my jeans anymore? Already?" Bella said as she sipped her cola. So far, she was digging the flabbergasted looks on everyone's faces. Elijah looked like a fish on dryland, Rebekah looked like she was ready to pounce her to hug her. Freya didn't look amused and Cami looked worried.

"She practically lives in her jeans," Myriam smirked. "When she's not traveling with Kol."

Freya, as the only one having been pregnant before, decided to speak up. "But you can just live in your home, the stairs would be a great exercise for a mother to be," she said, curious. "It's good to stay active."

"And she would have if it were just the one," Kol shot at his sister. "But those stairs will become a hazard soon enough and when the babies are born, it'll be even worse as she'll have to carry them up the stairs too, sometimes even with groceries."

Bella smacked Kol's arm. "Do not think for one moment that just because you're a guy, you get out of taking care of the twins, you idiot."

"Twins!" Rebekah gasped. "Really!"

"Well," Klaus smiled widely. "This calls for something more elegant than a glass of bourbon to celebrate, how about some champagne?" He looked over to a servant who nodded and scurried off. "And when will we get to welcome the children?"

"February or March," Bella replied. "I'm three months along now. Both Helios and Hades confirmed."

Rebekah couldn't hold her excitement anymore and rushed over to hug Bella tightly. "Babies! You're making me an aunt! I'll be the best babysitter ever, I promise!" She then flung herself at Kol. "And you'd better treat your girl right, Kol Mikaelson or I will punch you so hard you'll be seeing stars for days!"

"Hey, I know how to treat my girl, don't you worry, sister."

"Good, because if I hear otherwise, I will beat you up."

"Congratulations," Cami smiled at Bella and Kol. "I'm sure you two are going to be just fine."

After celebratory drinks, Bella and Kol went back to their apartment for a nice soak in the bath together. "Well, that went ridiculously well," Kol breathed out as he gently massaged Bella's scalp with his finger tips. "No doubt, of course, they're now arguing about it."

"At least they're keeping us out of it."

"For now, at least," he let out a snort. "Well, it's now official, we're going to be parents."

"Yep."

~o.O.o~

Rebekah looked at her siblings and Myriam and Cami and sighed deeply once Kol and Bella were well out of earshot. "Not that I'm not extremely happy about becoming an aunt, but am I the only one who thinks that Kol should not be a father?"

"The thought has crossed my mind," Elijah replied solemnly. "I'm not ashamed to admit that Kol has been behaving himself for once, but-"

"Oh come on!" Both Cami and Myriam rolled their eyes as if they had practised it. "First of all, you didn't have a great father," Myriam continued. "Mikael was a bully. Your mother… perhaps even worse with wanting to kill you for different reasons. Bella has a decent head on her shoulders and she and Kol are a great couple, they're great together. There is no doubt in my mind that they'll be fine."

"And yet, you have them move in here," Elijah pointed out.

"Yes! Because it's easier for Bella once she balloons, so she doesn't have to take the stairs to their apartment! And once the babies are born, they _are_ going to need all the help they can get because, hello, twins!"

"I don't see the need to coddle her," Freya huffed. "Women have been getting babies for centuries. Stairs won't hurt her. And besides, did everyone forget the prophecy? For all we know she could be giving birth to the beast that's to come."

"Do you honestly think that that's possible?" Elijah asked his sister, unsure if he was tired of her accusations or had to start believing her more due to her insistence.

"Oh, yeah, definitely," she replied nodding. "As you know, we're having troubles deciphering the prophecy still. I believe Kol only gave up on Bella's insistence. I sincerely doubt that her getting pregnant was an accident; it's more than likely that she asked her relative to make it happen - only to forge a stronger bond between her and Kol."

Cami got to her feet and straightened her clothes. "Freya, please dial down the paranoia. How many times more do we have to tell you that Bella's one of the good ones?"

"And I don't see why you're still here, being a part of the conversation."

"Because obviously Bella needs another champion in this family," Cami shot at Freya. "Look, I don't know the girl that well myself, like to yourself, my first introduction to her were the stories, the twisted stories, that the family told me about her. How she was trouble and that it was good that she was gone. But, since she basically single handedly saved each and everyone of you, I've heard the good stories. Sure, it's very likely that she's capable of abusing her power and allow it to corrupt her, but as it was made clear to me; she wouldn't have been allowed to walk around on Earth if the Gods thought she was going to do that," she continued. "That girl loves Kol with everything she has and it seemed that up until the magical fuckery, she had found her place within this family. She can't help it that she has a wide variety of family members who like to play around. Imagine what your behaviour must feel like for her, Freya. All she wants is to be liked, not feared, but liked. Despite his constant negativity towards her, deep down, even Elijah likes her. There is no evil bone inside of her. None. She doesn't kill, or tries to avoid it as much as possible. She turned your aunt into a rat, for fuck's sake. Klaus would have just killed her, same as Elijah. Just because she's more powerful than you, doesn't mean that she'll be the root of all evil in that prophecy of yours."

"And as far as Kol's impending fatherhood," Myriam slowly added after having given it some thought ever since Bella told her she was pregnant, "I think it's a wonderful thing. He and Bella are going to be awesome parents together, no matter what you think. He's changed for the better and you all know this. It's jealousy that makes you think that he won't be."

"Oh, you're a psychologist now?" Rebekah shot at Myriam.

"No, but I'm a vampire and like you, I was human once and I wanted my own family. Sometimes I still get that pang of jealousy when I see women with their strollers and having fun with their children. Granted, with a lot of magic and a lot of blood consumption much to the point where we lose our minds we can bear children but it's a lot of work and doesn't come cheap. Instead, we should be happy for new blood in our family in the form of Kol and Bella's twins. They're going to be human witches. No freaky hybrids, just healthy human beings. They're going to get so much love from the rest of us, as long as you move passed that jealousy and be happy for your brother," she then smiled widely. "I, for one, can't wait to spoil them rotten."

"Niklaus?"

Klaus sighed tiredly as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Neither of us Mikaelsons are fully equipped of being a parent. No matter how we'd try, we haven't been human in a very long time," he spoke carefully as not to anger his siblings. Oh, he truly believed that if Kol had a different mate than Bella, he'd be right there on the bandwagon and fully against it. "In comparison, Kol is even more human than all of us, considering the amount of times we've put him away in a box because he was too much of a handful. Bella balances him out. We saw that connection in Mystic Falls straight away. I have no doubt that they will be extraordinary."

"But what if Kol snaps and loses it? Kills one of the babies? We all know that he has the least amount of control."

"As I said, Bella balances him out, Rebekah," Klaus countered his sister. "You've seen him change when he was with Davina, and that wasn't merely because of the magic controlling him. It was due to him being without Bella. He'll be fine. They're going to get all the help they need, they request, and the babies will be loved by all," he said slowly, looking at each of his siblings, lingering on Freya. "And if your behaviour doesn't change, I'll personally see to it that it will, one way or another. If you're going to make me choose between Bella and you, then I will always choose her, do you understand?"


	35. Chapter 35

"Can we go and see a real doctor this week?" Bella complained as she once again shifted on the bed, bumping some pillows around and tried to take a nap. She felt like crap. She was constipated and had heartburn and whatever she tried to alleviate both symptoms, it didn't work. They'd been going to a healer on a regular basis, but Bella wanted to be sure that everything was alright with Dumb and Dumber through an ultrasound and human medical opinion.

They had moved into the compound two weeks ago after construction was completed and her stuff moved and she'd been glad that she didn't have to help moving and packing, it wasn't as if she couldn't do anything anymore, but she was usually grumpy and upset about how fast the babies were growing and her expanding belly.

She liked it that they were being left alone for as much as possible, much like they were in the apartment, but when they did decide to mingle with the rest of the family, they all gave her a wide berth, wary of her mood and the severity of the swings.

"Go take your nap, I'll see what I can do," Kol smiled at her, kissing her forehead. "Perhaps one of Elijah's or Nik's vampires are a doctor and would be willing to-"

"No. Human."

"Go nap," Kol said again, propping some pillows that had fallen off the bed against her and tucking her back in. "I'll be back in a bit."

"Asshole."

"Yep, love you too," he said as he quickly made his way out of the apartment and took a deep breath as soon as he set foot onto the courtyard. Bella's moods were terrible and what was worse was that he couldn't help her with her symptoms. His blood didn't work on her now as part of the defense mechanism her body had set up and human medicine was out of the question; hell, all efforts magical or not, to help her with the symptoms turned out to be in vain.

On top of that, more of Elijah's minions had started to stroll into town and that had them all on edge, especially after discovering that his brother's secret society hadn't ended when he made it end. They'd simply continued in secret without Elijah's all seeing eye, abiding by the rules he had set up. Ancient, stupid rules.

The Strix were all pretty much like his brother, but worse. And Kol didn't believe things could get worse than Elijah. The Strix were now run by Aya, one of Elijah's former lovers and of course, Tristan de Martel. He and his crazy sister sometimes came over to have a chat with Elijah and Nik when Myriam wasn't around and Kol never knew where to properly hide from them. But, to be fair, Lucien was far worse; less diplomatic about his opinions.

The fun part was that the ever so calm and sweet Bella wanted to take the trio out before they could do any harm to the family, but alas, she was a powerless little demi-Goddess these days and even then, she'd never hurt a fly - and while Kol wanted to do her bidding, his siblings told him not to.

Bella's request of visiting a human doctor wasn't anything new. She'd been asking for weeks and he always said 'no'. Sure, he could always compel the guy, or woman, to forget what they'd learned but why was she so adamant? The healer was doing fine, even Rebekah said so from a nurse's standpoint. Oh yes, his sister was in full nurse mode around Bella, or at least whenever she felt the need arise.

Freya was even worse and she was also the one who was usually at the root of Bella's daily annoyance. Freya figured because she'd been pregnant before, she knew everything. She tended to forget that it was centuries ago and that in this day and age things were different. Or not. Seeing as Bella couldn't enjoy the comforts of modern medicine anyway.

"Elijah," Kol headed to his brother with a tentative smile on his face. He could have Bella _think_ that she was in the hands of a human doctor, couldn't he? "Does any of your minions hold a PhD in medicine or gynecology?"

"Yes."

"Good! Could you set up a meeting with him or her and tell them to act as human as possible? Bella wants a human doctor."

Elijah eyed his younger brother. "Are you sure you would like me to do that?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Because when she finds out that the doctor is indeed a vampire, you'll be in big trouble with a pregnant woman and… the person I have in mind is a Cullen."

Kol scratched his head as he was trying to remember why that name sounded so familiar. "Cullen, as in those idiots from the books that this woman wrote?"

"One and the same. Granted, there are no Cold Ones, but they are still vampires and I'm ashamed to admit most of them are of my line. All of them but one."

He smirked then. "Bella's going to kill you."

"Not if she kills you first for lying to her," Elijah playfully pointed out.

"I'm still her favourite, my money is on you," Kol countered before heading to the kitchen to get himself something bloody where he ran into his sister Rebekah. "Shouldn't you be at the shelter?"

"No," she smiled at her brother as he started to guzzle down a blood bag. "I was thinking on taking the whale out for a nice afternoon once she wakes up from her nap."

"She's not a whale," he nearly choked on his blood. "But yes, good idea."

"Maybe start shopping a little for the nursery, yes?" She smiled at him. "It's about time, don't you think? Granted, you lot order online to avoid shopping, but come on, it's more fun to walk into a store and pick things out."

"It's your funeral."

"Oh, come on, I know she's a little bit grouchy but she has two humans baking inside of her. You should take her out on a date, take her mind off of things too. Make her feel pretty."

He narrowed his eyes on her. "Don't you think that I'm not trying every day? Between the impending danger that's dangling over our heads and her pregnancy I am doing everything that I can but she is really testing my patience!"

"Now now," Rebekah chided him. "Go have fun with the brothers, I'll try to lift your girl's spirits this afternoon!"

~o.O.o~

"Oh good, you've finally woken up from your nap," Rebekah's voice sounded quite bored. "Get up, freshen yourself up, we're going out for a late lunch and then some shopping."

Bella groaned as it was tempting to throw a pillow at Kol's sister.

"Come on, I know you feel like crap, but we're going to have a little bit of fun this afternoon."

She rolled out of bed and headed to the bathroom to do as she was told. She brushed her hair, splashed her face with water, pulled her hair back into a ponytail and pouted. She needed a haircut, desperately. Maybe go shorter than she usually had it. Like, right above her shoulders. That would freak Kol out to no end, wouldn't it? But the weight on her head would be a lot less.

Bella knew that Rebekah was going to get a kick out of that, too. "Hey, Rebekah?" Bella asked as she walked into the living room. "Shall we go and get our hair done?"

Rebekah smiled at her. "Would I ever refuse an opportunity to have a specialist massage my scalp while she's washing my hair? Yes! Let's do that! But no coloring for you…" she replied thoughtfully. "In fact, I want to reduce the amount of chemicals you'd inhale… I know _just_ the place. Granted, they serve you a nice glass of bubbly, but I expect that in your case, they'll have something non-alcoholic too."

"You do know that I'm allowed a glass of alcohol a week, right? Or more, even, if I feel daring enough."

"Non-alcoholic drinks for you," Rebekah said as she gathered Bella's bag and light coat. "You look amazing, by the way. That dress is really growing with you, good choice."

Bella beamed at that. "Thanks!"

Lunch was great, the Autumn sun shining on their faces as they were people watching was quite nice too. Luckily, Bella's heartburn had gone away a little and she felt a lot better after her nap. Bella and Rebekah both enjoyed their hairsalon treatment very much, even though Rebekah nearly had a heart attack when Bella allowed the hairstylist to chop off more than half of her hair. "Good thing you can't die from one, then," Bella countered jokingly as she watched her hair fall to the floor. "This is amazing."

"Oh, it is, but… oh my God, you look like a grown up now."

"Never!"

Rebekah grinned as she kept watching as the stylist cut off Bella's hair. "You know, now that we're getting pampered… how about going all out and get a manipedi?"

"No."

"Alright, then we're going to some shops to buy some nice little things for the nursery and take them home with us," she replied confidently. "I'll call an Uber to drive us around, don't worry."

They arrived back home a few hours later, right before dinner. Rebekah and Bella had taken things slow, and even grabbed a snack while being driven around all across town to various places. Bella was tired but happy when they came back; a change of scenery had been exactly what she needed.

They had bought a few cute outfits for the twins - which felt slightly moronic, the babies weren't even around yet! However, the clothes were too cute to pass up on and Bella then realized that she had turned into one of those girls; things were too cute. Too fluffy. And it was all so very pretty and cuddly.

Bella had even found a onesie for the babies that Kol would certainly love. The text on it was 'dad, you've got this', with arrows pointing to the five different holes where the head and limbs were supposed to go. She had already clocked some gag gifts for Christmas that she was going to buy for everyone, but couldn't because Rebekah was there and she didn't want to spoil the surprise. It was likely that those gifts could be purchased online too.

Bella dragged the bags into their little apartment and found Kol buried nose deep into a very ancient book. "Hey," she greeted him as she put the bags on the couch and made her way over to him to kiss him. "What are you up to?"

Kol looked up at her and blinked. "Holy shit!"

"What?" Bella blinked innocently. "Something on my face?"

"Your hair!"

"Oh," Bella grinned. "Do you like it? I do. Very much. Much lighter on my head and all floppy and bouncy!"

"I do but… your hair!"

"Oh, you'll get over it," she snorted as she playfully ruffled his. "It'll grow back… and then I might cut it again. This do is awesome."

He gently pulled her into his lap after shoving his chair back a little. Pouting, he ran a few fingers through her hair. "Did you have fun?"

"Yep," Bella smiled at him as she put her arms around his neck. "Signed us up for some hypnobirthing classes. I know you thought of it as a little bit floaty and new agey, but I've read experiences from mothers who had their best deliveries ever and mostly pain and hassle free. I mean, magic doesn't work, medicine doesn't work, so it's worth a shot, right?"

"Seriously? You signed US up?"

"Yes. You're coming with me to those classes, who knows? You might learn a thing or two, too," she smiled as she kissed him. "It'll be great. Rebekah volunteered to become our Doula, she's going to study hard so she can help us when needed."

"Rebekah? Not Myriam?"

"Well, she can do it too, if she so wishes, I mean, there will be two babies, after all," she replied, toying with his hair. "And there's a hotel down the block with a heated pool, Rebekah arranged for me to go there free of charge whenever I want a swim or a float."

He was surprised by the things that she had arranged that afternoon, with Rebekah, but nonetheless, she had been putting these things off. They weren't entirely necessary, but Bella liked to do things, never to sit still for a long period of time. "That sounds great, darling."

Bella nodded. "And I want us to go on a short trip. I mean, now is the chance still. When the babies are here, we won't be alone anymore. You can pick the destination, but I want us to go, even if it's just a weekend or something."

"Oh, but I'm not sure if I can do that right now… with everything that's going on…"

"Kol, please? I can still walk and not waddle and I promise I'll be good, I promise," she softly kissed him. "We could go to Mystic Falls for a bit?"

"Oh hell no," he laughed. "I'll take you to Florida, Disney World."

"YES!" Bella cheered and kissed him again.

~o.O.o~

During their weekend away, Kol mentioned that he had found a doctor for Bella to visit. One with the proper tools to make an ultrasound, draw blood and what not, although he was sure that blood wasn't really necessary. If something had been wrong with Twit and Twat her uncle or her grandfather would have told them so.

However, when they finally got there on a Wednesday, Bella saw the name and stopped dead in her tracks. "Cullen?" It was a name that was all too familiar to her and one that she hated with a passion - even though that hatred was probably misplaced. Why? Because that hack of a Stephenie Meyer had been slightly wrong about her, and likely she'd been wrong about the Cullens. There were no Cold Ones in the real world. The Cullens were ordinary vampires, or so she was told.

And maybe it wasn't intentional in Meyer's defense that she wrote the Cullens as manipulative assholes, but the books - and the movies - clearly depicted the opposite. There was a reason why Bella never wrote the Cullens as the good guys, well, except for Jasper. Jasper Whitlock was awesome and a victim of manipulation and emotional abuse. She usually wrote Jasper happy with someone else when writing her stories. Happy and far away.

And sure, this Cullen could quite possibly be a relative or something, but the name sent chills down her spine. "I'm not going in there."

"It's just a name, darling," Kol snorted. He hadn't read the Twilight books but knew some of the details mainly because Damon had informed him, but a name was just a name. Although, in this case, this Cullen was a vampire and a member of The Strix. But Bella didn't need to know that. "He's got an ultrasound machine?"

Bella narrowed her eyes on him. "I swear, if the doctor turns out to be who I think it is, I will kill you."

"It was Elijah's idea," Kol said quickly.

"And I will kill him too!"

"What order of victims did you have in mind?" He asked playfully, which seemed to stump Bella for a moment.

"Elijah first. I'll take my time with you."

Kol made a disapproving sound. "The babies will love to hear the story when they get older on how you killed their father."

"Shut up," she growled as she stomped forward into the clinic, only to once again stop dead in her tracks upon seeing the receptionist, causing Kol to bump into her with a whine.

"Now what?"

Bella pointed at the woman. "That's Rosalie."

"How do you know?"

"Read her fucking name tag, you moron," she hissed as Kol peered and then nodded. "How do I know? Stephenie Meyer described her as the most beautiful person ever. No, better yet, her true defining personal trait is her beauty. Violet eyes, wavy golden hair reaching her back and her posture perfect. Oh and look at that, she has a freaking mole on her mug as well."

"Don't be daft."

Bella scowled as she approached the desk. "Hi, Rosalie?"

"Hi! Welcome to the Cullen clinic! You must be Bella! Oh, you're up next. Have a seat in the waiting area, Dr. Cullen will be right with you."

"Carlisle?"

Rosalie blinked at that, unsure of the girl in front of her. "N-No? Carlisle works at the hospital."

Bella turned around and punched Kol in the arm. "Fucker!" She then turned around again, a pleasant but fake smile on her face. "Which Cullen is the gynocologist then?"

"Edward, don't worry, you'll be in safe hands with him."

Bella closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her freshly manicured fingernails tapping impatiently on the counter. "Kol, you'd better get Myriam. NOW."

"But…"

"NOW."

Sighing, Kol took out his phone and dialled Myriam's number and put her on speaker. "Hello beautiful sister in law."

" _Kol? Why are you calling me? What trouble did you get yourself into now?"_

"Could you come to the Cullen clinic? Bella wants you here."

" _...Cullen...clinic…?"_

"Edward Cullen is not going to touch me!" Bella growled.

" _Merde. I'm on my way. Don't you move an inch. I'll take care of everything once I arrive."_

After Kol disconnected the call, he looked at his girlfriend. "You know, if you want people dead, I could do that."

"Dead?" Rosalie blinked. "Oh, no please don't, you'll be in a lot of trouble if you kill any one of us."

"Is that so?" Kol smirked as he leaned against the counter and looked at Rosalie. "I'll have you know that I know that you're a member of the Strix."

"Yes, and that's why you'll be in a lot of trouble if you kill me."

"Nah," Kol waved his hand. "You see, I happen to know that Aya is a pussycat and that my brother Elijah will understand."

"Y-You're a Mikaelson?"

"Yep," he nodded and compelled her not to move.

"You have no reason to kill us."

"Sorry, darling, my hormonal pregnant girlfriend says otherwise. Her name is Bella. Isabella Marie Swan," he smirked as he looked at Bella. "She's not a big fan of a particular set of books, you might have heard of them, and she feels the need that you must be eliminated."

Rosalie was quiet for a moment. "Well fuck, and here we believed it was more of a coincidence."

"There's no such thing as coincidences," Bella muttered before turning around to see Myriam standing behind her with a big grin on her face. "He's in his office."

"Yay! Let's go!" Myriam said as she dragged Bella along with her. "I'll make a spectacle out of him."

"Please do!" Bella replied all giddy and cheered when Myriam kicked down the door. Kol stayed behind to keep an eye on Rosalie and to steer away other patients should they come in, but he felt disappointed. He'd kill for Bella, why did she have to call Myriam to do this for her? Soon, the building was filled by pleading, screams, loud banging and medical instruments clanging. Myriam's maniacal laughter drowning out most of it. Myriam taunting the vampire by seemingly pushing things up his ass, at least that's what Kol thought he heard her say, could have been the penis and oh, that would hurt like a motherfucker. He wanted to kill Rosalie now. Do the same thing. The poor girl was terrified, he could tell.

After 20 glorious minutes, Bella came back into the reception area, a big smile on her face as Myriam followed her. Myriam was all bloody and had this big wide grin on her face as she bounced Edward's head in her hands. "That was so much fun!" She then tossed the head to Kol before leaping over the desk and started on Rosalie. "Catch!"

"But I can do that," Kol pouted. "I want to kill."

"And you took me here. You knew better, but you still took me here because he's not a human doctor and that's what you wanted. Now you can watch while Myriam has all the fun," Bella replied as she pat him on the back. "You should see the amount of syringes that Myriam has pushed through Edward's dick, it was glorious."

Punishment. Figures. Of course he was being punished, and fortunately it wouldn't end up in his death. All he could do was watch. Watching Myriam kill Rosalie ever so slowly with stuff she found around behind the desk was like watching an artist at work, reminding Kol of Nik's dark side. Nik was a master of torture and killing as well, while Kol merely liked to chase his prey to hear them scream.

"How about you find the security feeds and destroy them?" Bella prompted him. "Make sure there's no copy of some sort to actually get us into trouble."

He didn't want to leave now! "Bella, we can compel the police."

"And yet, there'd still be evidence floating around. No, destroy it all."

"Fine," he whined as he placed Edward's head on the counter and went to look for the back office while Rosalie's screams and whines kept sounding like music to his ears. Oh, he was definitely going to go out for a fresh kill later. This wasn't fair.


	36. Chapter 36

Elijah was sitting in the courtyard watching his brother paint when Kol, Bella and Myriam returned. He knew that Kol and Bella had gone to see Edward Cullen, but why was Myriam with them? Better yet, why was she so bloody?

"Oh, someone's been naughty!" Klaus smirked as he put down his paintbrush and looked at his girlfriend. "What did you do, love?"

"Ask Bella," Myriam grinned as she threw the heads of Edward and Rosalie in Elijah's lap before jumping Klaus, wrapping her legs around him and kissing him hard.

"Are these… who I think they are?" Elijah said slightly appalled, slightly intrigued, but mostly worried. "They are, aren't they?"

"The Cullen's golden children?" Bella said as she sat down on the sofa and poured herself a well deserved bourbon, downing it before anyone could object. She'd been a good girl and staying off the alcohol ever since she found out she was pregnant, but this was well deserved, she believed. "Yes."

"Why?"

"You know why," Bella shot at him.

Sighing, Elijah pinched the bridge of his nose. "Very well, I suppose I should talk to Aya and make this right… you can't just go and kill well respected members of The Strix, Bella, they will not tolerate that in one bit. And with everything that's going on right now, I wish to keep them friendly, not vengeful."

"Their deaths are on you, Elijah," she countered angrily. "Don't you blame me for this, or Myriam, for doing all the killing. You knew that I would find out anyway, so a part of me believes you don't care for their deaths that much."

"Bella, you only know them as fictional characters, why do you think they're so bad now?"

"They're part of your elite little club, aren't they?" Kol piped up, placing the bourbon bottle out of Bella's reach after she had poured herself a second glass. "That should say enough."

He looked around for a moment, Myriam still very happy with her kills and in his brother's arms, kissing his face off. No doubt they'd disappear to the bedroom soon. Bella looked severely annoyed and his brother Kol like a kicked puppy. Sucking in a breath, he nodded. "Very well. I shall invite the remaining Cullens over for their last meal without telling them it will be their last. I'm sure that we can make a spectacle out of our dessert."

"Really?" Bella perked up. "You're giving the green light to kill them all?"

"They are a heavy influence within the Strix, with them out of the picture, we might get more done with them."

Bella squealed as she hauled herself off the sofa and hugged Elijah. "You're the favourite brother now!"

Elijah chuckled darkly. "You're very welcome, Bella."

Bella released Elijah and thought for a moment. "I want mushroom ravioli for dinner with them, I hate the stuff, but call it poetic."

"Oh, you're wicked," Myriam grinned, after realizing why. "I like it!"

"You're only discovering this now? Haven't you read my stories, woman?" Bella grinned before waddling off to their little courtyard apartment. "Expect a new story in… two hours! No, three!"

"Yay! That gives me enough time to have my wicked ways with this one here," Myriam replied as she jumped off Klaus and pulled him to their bedroom.

"Hey, what about me?" Kol whined as he trotted after Bella. "Am I still in the dog house?"

"Yep," Bella smiled at him. "At least for another three hours, then I'm all yours."

~o.O.o~

Elijah worked fast; the day after the glorious killing of Edward and Rosalie, he had invited the rest of the family over for dinner and according to him, Carlisle Cullen was impressed by how the originator of the Strix wanted to have dinner with him. Bella overheard Elijah saying that he found it peculiar that the deaths of the Golden Children hadn't reached him yet, but perhaps they weren't in constant contact all the time. Nevertheless, according to Klaus the heads of Edward and Rosalie would make beautiful centerpieces on the dining table.

Cami wasn't going to join them as she had to work, but she wished them all a good time, knowing how deep Bella's hatred for the Cullens went. However, she did say that outside of the books, the Cullens were real people and perhaps not as bad as she believed they were. That Bella should give them a chance, seeing as after all, she wasn't the same Bella from the books?

Kol was all giddy. Bella had promised him a kill, and he was itching to do just that. Sure, it was a vampire, but a kill nonetheless. He had praised her the previous night, loving her dark side and hoped it would come out to play more often, which made her feel generous enough to allow him one kill. Alice - if she'd come along.

He found it amusing that the Cullens were part of the Strix. It was almost as if it was meant to be. Karma. Ironic. Or perhaps it was a mere happenstance. Whatever it was, they were going to die. They hadn't even given them a reason to kill them, merely because of Bella and those annoying Twilight books. He supposed that was reason enough - who was he kidding? They were Mikaelsons, they didn't have to have a reason to kill.

In anticipation for the dinner, Bella had gone swimming for the first time at the place she and Rebekah had found last week. He hadn't been allowed to come with, but during their stay in Florida that weekend, they had gone to the pool together and floated around for a while. Bella hadn't wanted to hear that she was beautiful, but he kept telling her anyway as it was the truth. No matter what shape or form, she was beautiful.

"I don't even know why I'm listening to you," Kol said playfully as Bella was brushing her hair while getting ready for dinner. "I could have gone out and killed them all."

"Because you know that there'll be hell to pay if you did?" She teased him. "I never said you couldn't kill anyone or anything, just the Cullens are off limits."

"Apart from Alice."

"Yes, you can have her when the time is right," she put the brush down and walked over to him, softly kissing him as she held on to him for balance. "She needs to have her last meal first. Elijah isn't going to get any kill for even suggesting us going to Edward Cullen."

Kol chuckled darkly as he put his arms around her. "Did the experience at least disturb you enough to forget all about going to -"

"A human doctor? No. And I'm still going," she said angrily as she jabbed his chest with her finger. "A doctor of my choosing. You guys can all go to hell."

"Bella, you're a demi-Goddess, you don't need a human doctor, you need-"

"Oh, a God? Yes, but can a God give us an ultrasound?" She countered, still jabbing his chest with her finger. "I want an ultrasound so we can give our kids a scrapbook with stuff about them in it. Pictures. Stories. Firsts. Shit that normal people do."

"You do know that you won't get any pictures of us, do you?"

She narrowed her eyes on him. "Why not? Because we're immortal? Fuck that shit. There are plenty of pics of you guys from ages ago in old news papers, why should this be any different?"

"Well," he finally had enough of her jabbing and took her hand as he pulled her against him as well as he could these days. "We could get robbed, those books could be stolen and end up in the wrong hands, compromising our family."

Sighing, she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I see your point."

"Good."

"And as much as I see that point, you must realize by now that when it comes to our family I would do anything to make sure nothing happens."

"Bella, our boys will have a target on their back just for being a Mikaelson, scrapbook or not."

"Then we're going to make them Swans."

Kol laughed and shook his head. "Won't work, they're still Mikaelsons."

She was quiet for a moment and then nodded. "Very well. If they'll have a target on their back as soon as they get out of me, then you wouldn't mind that scrapbook," she said smugly and ruffled his hair.

Kol huffed. "For a moment there I was worried you wouldn't allow them to take my name."

Bella shrugged. "Your name is more real than mine is. Charlie Swan is a figment of Helios' imagination, he made him up so…"

"Well, you're real," he said as he planted a kiss on her forehead. "So your name is real too, don't worry about it. If you want to make scrapbooks for our children, then go right ahead. It's not as if we're a regular family who are unable to protect their own."

"Yay," she smiled at him.

"Can we go and join our family for dinner now? I'm sure that by now our guests have arrived and I just can't wait to see the look on their faces when they realize how close to reality those stupid books were."

Bella scowled. "Similar. Not real. Thank fuck they're not entirely real but those Cullens have to go, for a better life expectancy of others," she sighed as she reluctantly let go of Kol and fixed her shirt. "My boobs hurt."

"I'll give them a nice massage after dinner," he laughed and kissed her quickly. "Come on, can't keep them waiting."

Bella nearly threw up as she remembered the words used in the books upon describing the remaining Cullens as she watched them from a distance. They hadn't noticed her and Kol yet, which made it perfect to observe them. It was easy to identify Carlisle; he was young and blond-out-of-a-jar alright. Handsomer like a movie star? Not quite. Was handsomer even a word? Also; the books said that he looked like Zeus' younger brother. Ha. He only wished he was related to a God.

Esme wasn't snow white in the flesh. Not even close. However, she did have a softness over her and her hair color seemed to be the same as in the books as well. She did look like someone belonging in a silent movie, especially after hearing her laugh. No, it was best that that laugh was silenced.

Oh, Emmett was definitely big and muscle-y. Scary dude. Likely the muscle for Carlisle and Esme, but he certainly was no match for Bella's family. In a fair fight he would likely be a challenge, but why play fair?

All three members were immaculately dressed, though, and likely no thanks to the little imp sitting next to her brother Emmett. Alice was petite. Her black spiky hair was well coiffed and she was talking quite animated to Myriam, who looked like she wanted to kill the vampire herself.

Someone was missing. Where was Jasper? Bella scanned the courtyard, but couldn't find him. She wasn't panicked, or worried, but merely wondering if he got the right end of the stick in reality and not stuck with the Cullens for some reason or another. Oh, she hoped so. She had always liked Jasper in the books; the only redeemable thing about those books, really. Bella had felt for him and knowing that he wasn't _here_ , right now, was great. She was certainly going to google him later. Perhaps he died an old man with a lot of kids and grandkids.

"Ah, look who's decided to join us on this lovely occasion," Elijah said as he pointed at Kol and Bella. "My youngest brother Kol and his…" he cocked his head, a pensive look on his face. "Well, hopefully future wife," he added with a slight chuckle. "Kol, Bella, meet Mr. Carlisle Cullen and his wife Esme, his son Emmett and daughter Alice."

"Pleasure," Kol said curtly as he helped Bella to sit down, right between himself and Niklaus. While yes, she was still immortal, she was still able to get hurt and unable to defend herself properly.

"I see congratulations are in order," Esme smiled at Bella. "Not long to go?"

"I wish," Bella muttered as she took a sip of her soda.

"How charitable of you and your family to take in a pregnant human being," Carlisle commented to Elijah, Bella could tell that he wasn't quite sure to be impressed or appalled. "I've always strived to be as charitable as possible. As you're aware, I found Esme when she'd lost everything she ever had, saved her. Much like Alice and Emmett, not to mention Edward and Rosalie. Oh, such a shame they couldn't be here today."

Bella felt as if she was going to vomit. Where was their food?

"Ah, yes, your other son and daughter, are they not?" Klaus said amused. "Where are they?"

"There was an emergency in Biloxi last night, they went and filled in."

"They are just as generous and caring as my husband," Esme added proudly. "They're hard workers and quite successful in their field. Tristan loves them dearly."

Elijah noticed the sick look Bella had on her face before he turned back to their guests. "You don't have to pretend to be other than who you are," he told them. "We all know that the Strix are… while extremely talented and successful, they're _all_ untrustworthy. Merely because you believe that the situation you're in has changed when Bella came to sit at the table doesn't mean you must behave differently."

"Elijah, while I respect you immensely for the part you've played in creating the Strix, do you believe that it's in _your_ best interest to talk about them the way that you do?" Carlisle piped up, daringly. "After all, while you may have compelled us to stay - whatever happens, it doesn't mean that once this show of power is over, we're leaving here."

"Cute," Myriam smirked as she looked over at Bella before hearing the servants come up with their food. "Ah, finally," she said a little over the top, mock scolding the girl who put the plate down in front of her. "We were starting to get hungry here."

"Mushroom ravioli," the waitress, Amber, announced.

"We had the chef from that Italian restaurant in Port Angeles flown over to make this dish for you exclusively," Klaus said amused as he looked at the Cullens. "As, after all, in the books your Edward took his date to that restaurant."

Alice scowled, the same scowl could be seen on the faces of her family. "Do you have any idea how much ridicule we've faced because of that… well… I wouldn't even call it literature! But I suppose the books served its purpose; I got rid of my husband Jasper, just so that the target on our backs was less."

"What did you do to him?" Bella tried not to sound too angry or upset. Her only hope would be that Alice didn't kill him. She smiled at the waitress as her plate was set down in front of her and had to admit, it actually smelled delicious. The dish wasn't entirely vegetarian, Bella wanted little shreds of chicken inside of it to make it better.

"Oh, divorced him and sent him on his way," Alice shrugged. "He always preferred the warmer climates, so… No idea what he's been up to."

"But he's alive?"

"Of course, we're not that heartless. I still love him, but for the sake of our reputation… he had to go."

"No doubt he's off gallivanting with his friends Peter and Charlotte, why do you care?"

Bella shrugged as she took a bite of her ravioli and decided to keep quiet for the rest of the meal. The more she heard them talk, the sooner she wanted to make sure that these vampires wouldn't roam the earth for much longer. Desert was a cola slushie. The sheer look of horror on the faces of the Cullens was priceless.

"Now, I have to admit," Elijah started after the table was cleared and they were enjoying a nice glass of bourbon. "I didn't invite you for a normal dinner to discuss business, but I suppose you've already realized that when we compelled you not to run and merely to enjoy yourselves. This dinner is hardly ordinary."

Almost as if on command, Carlisle spoke up. "Why are we here?"

"Bella here, thought it would be _fun_ to invite you over before we kill you," Myriam smirked as she pointed at her friend. "And truth be told, I think it's a lot of fun too, giving you one last meal before we do the same to you as we've done to your precious Edward and Rosalie." She then lifted the lids of the trays that had been standing in the middle of the table for the entire time, revealing the decapitated heads of the Cullen's golden children causing the vampires to gasp in shock and horror, before getting angry.

"What in the world did they ever do to you!" Esme blurted out. "They did nothing wrong!"

"Oh, did we forget to mention that your death is a matter of principle of our favourite latest member of the family, Isabella Marie Swan?" Myriam's grin grew wider as she yet again pointed at her friend.

"But we're not anything like the family in the books!" Alice squeaked in horror as she looked at Bella, pleadingly. "Please, don't kill us. We're doing so much good! I'll throw you a baby shower! We could be best friends! Like in those books! Surely it was right about something?"

"I think I'm going to be sick," Bella muttered as she took her glass of soda and got up from her chair with a protective hand over the opening of the glass. "We've suffered their presence for long enough."

"May we proceed?" Elijah asked kindly.

Bella nodded, and before she knew it, Esme's head got lopped off by Rebekah and Myriam was on top of Carlisle, enjoying herself as she play fought him for a moment before ripping out his heart. Kol told Alice to run, he loved to chase his prey - Bella figured that they had compelled the vampires to stay and not to run away to make sure that they'd be killed in the end and Klaus merely stared at Emmett before lunging over the table.

It was over before it had even started. Even Kol came back with a pout on his face. "I would have thought they'd put up more of a fight," he said as he put Alice's head next to Edward's. "I was itching for an exciting kill, but you tamed them too much, 'lIjah. This wasn't _fun_."

"This wasn't about you, Kol," Elijah shot at him before looking at Bella, who seemed to be unsure how to feel about the slaughter that had happened in front of her. "This was all about the mother of your children. Are you satisfied, Ms. Bella?"

Bella looked at Elijah and nodded. "The world can always do with less douchebags, thank you. Thank you for organizing this. I know you shouldn't have but…"

"It's my pleasure," Elijah replied quickly. "We shouldn't have to live in a world where you can't take out your almost enemies."

"We kill for sport, this was a fun family event," Rebekah grinned as she put her hair back into a ponytail. "So, we up for lunch tomorrow? Just us girls?"


	37. Chapter 37

She had felt it bubble underneath her skin for a couple of weeks now, the itch she needed to scratch badly and no, it wasn't sex. At twenty four weeks, Bella had ballooned and gained 30 pounds, if not more, and the size of her belly was huge - and she still had some growing to do! Sex was quite uncomfortable and enjoyable at the same time, but she knew that soon she'd have to switch to giving Kol a handjob or a blowjob because she was cramping up more often than not and the 'quite uncomfortable' could soon turn into 'very uncomfortable'. Such a turn off.

No, she was talking about her Demi-Goddess self. Kol and Freya had done everything in their power, consulted every witch in the Quarter and some foreign witches as well, on the prophecy and the power it held over the Mikaelson family and had come up with nothing. While Freya kept insisting that it was true, Kol had given up and was ready to kill his siblings' first sirelings on sight.

And Bella was too. She couldn't believe why Rebekah, Klaus and Elijah would allow their first sirelings get underneath their skin so much. Klaus had changed his mind and was merely playing with Lucien, but she could tell that something still wasn't right. She still felt like an outsider and slightly alienated. There were three camps in the Compound; the sirelings with Freya and sometimes Elijah on their side, the Mikaelsons and then there were Cami, Myriam and Bella.

It felt so strange. So alien, and Bella wanted to fix it. She had already received several phone calls from the Regent about the amassing vampires in the city and while Bella had explained the situation and what her stance was on it, she couldn't help but to feel obligated to fix this - even knowing that her powers were unreliable. Surely her babies would understand that she'd need a little bit of juice to help the family?

Seeing the trio on an almost daily basis larking about in the center of the courtyard didn't do her stress levels any good. Sure, she went swimming, or went to get a nice massage or went to her classes, but they were always there. There was no escaping them, always scheming, having fun and shutting their mouths when she passed by.

She nearly blew a fuse when Elijah announced that Tristan, Lucien and Aurora were going to join the family for Thanksgiving dinner. Kol assured her that it was only a ruse, and that they only liked Thanksgiving for the lies and deceit and ultimately a sibling fight and that, just as they had done with the Cullens, one last meal before their demise was merely _fun_. He took her to the annual Thanksgiving run celebrations to get her mind off of dinner while the servants and cooks slaved away at the compound.

Bella napped for a couple of hours after returning home until Kol woke her gently to get ready. He was all giddy, because it wasn't merely going to be the last Thanksgiving of the retarded trio, no, someone else was going to die. It had been difficult not to let his siblings know, but he supposed it was easier to cover things up with Myriam on their side, and he and Bella had been working on things their way while going out for their classes. And while his siblings weren't going to be happy about what he and Bella had found out, they were going to be on their side. Kol was sure of that. Because aside from their words, they had video evidence. Oh yes. This was going to be a Thanksgiving nobody was ever going to regret soon.

A story for the ages.

Yes.

And Kol was happy; Bella had dressed herself in one of the new dresses they had bought in the boutique in the Garden District that had grown to become her favourite - maternity wear that didn't look outdated, and great wrap around dresses that she could wear for a very long time. Comfortable wear. And the people who worked there were very sweet too. "I could devour you right now, screw dinner."

"But what about our plans?" Bella pouted as she looked at him. "Good riddance, right? Please? Make my last months of growing tiny humans in my belly stress free?"

He softly kissed her as he gently moved his hand over her belly. "We really should start talking about names for them."

"Sure, but not tonight," she smiled at him. "They're asleep, please let them sleep," Bella said playfully as she swatted his hand away. "There are no feet near my bladder or ribs right now, I'm happy."

Kol snorted and took her hand before leaving their little apartment to join the family for dinner. "Sorry we're a tad late," Kol announced as they approached the table where his siblings and their guests were already seated. "We're moving at a slower pace these days."

"You could have started to get ready a bit earlier," Freya retorted.

"Freya," Elijah shushed his sister as he watched Kol and Bella take a seat. "It's been a very long time since we've all been able to sit and enjoy each other's company over dinner, let's not waste this opportunity or soil it with our differences. It's Thanksgiving, after all."

"So, what did we miss?" Kol said amused as he brought the potatoes closer to him and Bella so they could start filling their plates. "Paranoia? Threats?"

"Oh, of course," Rebekah sighed as she sipped her wine. "They want to take us out of the equation now, lock us away forever."

"Well, in your case Beks, perhaps that's not such a bad thing," Kol grinned as he got the platter with roast on it. "You're always causing trouble, tut tut."

"At least someone's worried about me!" Rebekah breezed as she slammed the table. "We're not all blessed by having-"

"We're immortal, darling," he purred, cutting her off. For the months that they had to deal with the first sirelings they kept Bella's status as a demi-Goddess a secret. If only they knew. "We don't have anything to be afraid of, especially since this whole prophecy has been nothing but a tool to create paranoia, mayhem, cause confusion and drive us all apart, in the hopes of us killing each other, box each other or worse."

"We don't know that," Freya sighed. "We've been working on it for months and-"

"Exactly!" Kol cheered as he took the gravy from his brother and helped himself, happy to see Bella was happily eating with a smile on her lips, allowing him to confront everyone. "We haven't found anything to counter the prophecy nor any grounds for that prophecy to be in place, don't you find that odd, Niklaus?" He asked his brother, drawing him into the conversation. "Usually when something as big as a prophecy happens, there's proof. Documentation. Not merely spoken from the lips of a witch we've never seen before and was killed before we even had the chance to talk to her ourselves. You know as well as I do that this is merely a ruse. For more power. They want to become us."

Aurora huffed angrily as she crossed her arms and spoke in her high pitched whiny voice. "We were you!"

"Not me," Kol smiled at Aurora. "You were my siblings, not I. And, to hold a grudge this long, really? Are you mental? No wait, you lot were merely bored and decided to see if the Mikaelsons were gullible. Well, congratulations, it seems like most of my siblings are," he said as he slow clapped before taking a bite out of his food. "Granted, your scheme was clever. Very intricate, much like the schemes my brothers would think of in the past. I nearly fell for it. Nearly."

"Kol, the prophecy is real," Freya spoke. "Just because we can't find anything-"

"We didn't find anything because you blocked every attempt in finding out, _sister_ ," he replied venomously, his vampire face slowly bleeding out.

"Calm down," Bella said calmly as she rubbed his arm. "Have something to eat first, let them digest your words and come up with a counter."

"I want to end this now, darling."

"So do I, but I don't want my food to get all bloody, this is good stuff," she smiled at him. "There are nuts in the mashed potatoes! I love it!"

Klaus smirked and beamed at Elijah. "See, Elijah? At least some of us appreciate my input on tonight's dinner."

"Honestly," Elijah rolled his eyes before narrowing them on his youngest brother and his very pregnant girlfriend. "What do you mean by bloody? Niklaus and I have not discussed anything of the sort!"

"No, but Bella, Myriam and I have. We've had some help from Camille, of course, her psychological insights was what made us dig deeper," Kol replied as he took a bite from his mash and scrunched up his nose. "Yuck, nuts. Would have been better with bacon in it." Bella was right, but he really wanted to tear out some hearts. Now.

"Ohh, bacon," Bella cooed as she made a mental note for herself for later. Bacon and vanilla ice cream. Oh yes. She made sure she finished her food quite quickly, realizing that Kol wanted to get this over with. It was sweet of him to at least attempt some patience because of the food and seeing as his siblings were all staring at him in confusion, Bella sighed. "Okay."

"See, the prophecy isn't real," Kol explained. "As soon as I noticed that our oldest sister was stringing me along, I played along but informed Bella and Myriam about the facts. And the facts are, there aren't any. Other than our sister conniving with Tristan, Lucien and Aurora to replace us with them."

"I'd never!" Freya said, obviously hurt.

"Oh, here we go, the loon had a theory and ran with it," Lucien rolled his eyes. "Seriously, Niklaus, do you believe him? I honestly don't know why he's still walking around and not boxed up."

"Because I'm in his way," Bella said as she narrowed her eyes on Lucian. "And so is Myriam."

"An ordinary vampire and what? A witch?" Lucien huffed. "Please. Just say the word, Niklaus, I'll have their heads on a platter in no time at all. After all, the prophecy does speak of a friend or a member of your family who'll betray you."

At least Freya hadn't told the trio _everything_ , but still, if him betraying the family meant the box, it surely meant death for Freya. And Lucien had to check himself, Kol happened to know that Bella was more than eager to get in on this and felt up to some mischief. "Myriam and I cashed in some favors from impartial witches, seers, voodoo priestesses, you name it, and hell, just to be thorough, Bella asked a member of her family to ask another member of her family who asked another… We know we don't really have to convince Nik of the truth because he loves Myriam and is very fond of Bella. We don't need to convince Rebekah, either, as she'll side with Nik always, but no, we have to prove this to Elijah, who's enamoured with our eldest sister. Who fell into our laps and has been manipulating this family ever since."

"That's a lie! I would _never_ do anything to betray this family!"

Myriam let out a snort. "Neither would Kol, but on occasion he does and he usually has a reasonable explanation," she pointed out. "To make a long story short, there's no prophecy. There's only preying on the paranoia of this family to make sure they destroy each other and I'm sorry folks, the show is over. It ends now."

Kol leapt up from his chair and wanted to rip Lucien to shreds, but Elijah stopped him, slamming Kol into one of the pillars instead. "If you kill them, vampires lines die with them."

"I don't care, Elijah. You lot made more than enough yourselves, but they're going to die," Kol sneered as he struggled against his brother's hold on him. "For the good of this family, they're all going to die."

"Niklaus," Elijah sighed, a hint of boredom and annoyance in his tone as he held out his hand.

Kol grinned. "You forget, brother, Nik doesn't have ownership of our daggers anymore."

Bella watched as Freya prepared herself to cast a spell Kol's way and gave her a huge headache instead, which she was fighting because she knew it was merely an illusion. She could tell that she wasn't powerful to do things by merely thinking about it; she had been warned about this, her body was protecting the babies now.

Bella had to focus, and was just in time to make Freya believe that she was powerless. "Try again, Freya, I dare you. You'll join your aunt in that cage!" she threatened and just like that, Freya turned into a tortoise. A freaking tortoise and Bella hadn't done anything. "Ah hell."

Using the confusion to his advantage, Kol pushed Elijah off of him and quickly ripped out the hearts of Lucien and Tristan, causing Aurora to scream in panic. "She's all yours, darling," he smirked at Myriam, who had been itching to kill the older vampire. It wasn't going to be easy, but seeing how weak Aurora was compared to her brother, Myriam was going to have a blast taking her apart.

"Kol!" Rebekah scowled as she was pushed out of the way as Myriam moved forward. "You can't just do this, what if Freya's right?"

"You haven't been listening, sister, so allow me to say it again; there is no prophecy. There never was. It was all cooked up by the terrible triplets and our eldest sister. Feel free to kill the tortoise, if you'd like. I never cared for Freya anyway."

"But why!"

"To divide us. To get rid of us so they can be us, haven't you been listening? Honestly." Kol rolled his eyes as he wiped his hands on Lucien's bleeding corpse and smirked as he looked at Niklaus. "I know what he meant to you, Nik, but admit it, you wanted to do this yourself."

"Why do it when I've got you?" He retorted as he watched Myriam battle it out with Aurora. "Well done, Kol."

"See, that's why you wanted me to return, because I do the things you and even Elijah find hard to do!"

"Do not push it, brother," Elijah scowled. "You're fortunate that Niklaus made a pact with Bella not to put you in your coffin for this," he breezed before turning to his other brother. "Either he leaves with his pregnant girl or I will."

"Good luck, Elijah, don't let the door hit you on the way out."

"Bella, what the fuck did you do to me?!" Aurora shrieked as she held Myriam in a headlock. "Change us back right now!"

"I didn't do anything," she replied impishly, blinking at the sight before her. "Come on, Myr, fight, are you really going to have her best you like this?" Was that a dark aura around her? Magic? What?

"Bella!" Aurora cried out as Myriam's grin grew wider and wider. "You've changed us around, now swap us back!"

It was magic, wasn't it? "Prove it."

"CeilingCat, come on," Aurora whined. "My God, this voice is so whiny!" She snapped Myriam's neck and stepped over her before looking at her. "Oh, I'm so pretty… and now I'm not…" she then turned to Bella and advanced on her before Kol stopped her. "Oh come on! She needs to switch us back!"

"Myr, that's not one of my gifts," Bella blinked as she looked at Aurora. Aurora didn't know about CeilingCat and TrashPanda, did she? "I do illusions mostly, remember?" Freya was a tortoise, she couldn't possibly have switched Myriam and Aurora.

"Yeah well, this is NOT an illusion!" she huffed as she beat Kol's chest. "Let go of me, you oaf."

Bella took a few steps forward to Aur-Myriam and touched her arm, but the dark aura didn't lift. "Huh. Normally that'd work," she replied as she scratched her head. "Then again, I was warned that I wasn't able to function properly. In any case, I didn't make you switch bodies, this is magic so I suggest you find the witch responsible."

"Fine," Myriam said determined. "You keep her here," she said as she pointed at her own body. "I'm going to hunt down some witches and if I can't find the solution to this, I'm going to kill some witches."

Klaus seemed to be stupefied before the penny dropped. "I'll join you, love, because I can't stand to look at Aurora's face for much longer."

"Oh, but the power this body holds though," Myriam sighed. "You can really tell that she's older and stronger than me."

"No, absolutely not, we're going to find a way to change you back!"

Kol wrapped his arms around Bella as the servants started to dispose of the bodies of Lucien and Tristan and Klaus and not-Aurora-but-Myriam sped off to chase down some witches. "Darling, are you sure you didn't do anything?" He asked playfully.

"Well, I wanted to change Freya into a rat so she could join your aunt in the cage but…" she casually waved to the tortoise. "But I'm sure I'm not responsible for what happened to Aurora and Myriam. First of all, I don't have that kind of power and second of all, she had a dark aura around her, it's magic. I don't do magic and thirdly; why would I want to swap Myriam and Aurora? They hate each other! I hate Aurora! Everyone does!"

Kol let out a slight chuckle. "Elijah, I expect you to keep an eye on Aurora until Myriam and Nik come back."

"I was told to leave," he replied calmly. "And I shall, I will not tolerate this nonsense any longer. This family - honestly." And with that, Elijah zoomed away.

"Oh, don't look at me," Rebekah threw her hands in the air.

"Oh, but I am, sister. Aurora's yours, isn't she? You look after her!" Kol grinned. "I'm sure that eventually, Elijah will stop this nonsense and will return."

"Kol! Don't make me do this!"

"Oh, but Beks, look at it this way, you get to snap Myriam's neck over and over again! Compel her to be a monkey! Anything but to permanently damage that body!"

Rebekah smiled widely then, almost as if she had just received a Christmas present. "This is going to be so much fun!"

He gently coaxed Bella back to their little part of the Compound and as soon as the door closed, he dropped to his knees and gently rubbed her belly. "Oi, you lot, that wasn't a nice thing you did to your Auntie Myriam, but I am so proud of you!"


	38. Chapter 38

For an entire week, Myriam-as Aurora-stayed in the guest quarters because Klaus didn't want her anywhere near him looking like the lunatic. Aurora-as Myriam was kept compelled at all times. Rebekah took great pleasure in playing with her, because she'd always wanted to be able to compel Myriam but out of respect never did. Now that it wasn't actually Myriam but Aurora, Rebekah went to town - much to Klaus and Myriam's disapproving looks.

Klaus and Myriam were still searching for the witch responsible for this swap and Bella felt guilty as hell, not leaving her and Kol's apartment for a few days. When Kol told her that their unborn children were responsible for Myriam's current predicament, Bella couldn't believe him. Sure, the boys were alive, kicking Bella back and blue from the inside, but to be capable of doing magic? No, that was out of the question.

It took a meeting with the Regent to inform her about all the happenings at the Mikaelson compound to convince Bella otherwise. The Regent explained that, from her knowledge and that of the Ancestors, the Mikaelsons were once humans with great magical potential and that only Kol had tapped into that, aside from their mother. Bella knew this story, of course. Kol missed being a witch, but he'd rather be something more sturdy so that he wouldn't be easily killed by his siblings.

To be pregnant with twins and first borns, inside a demi-Goddess shell, made sense for the babies to already practise magic, tapping into Bella's power and convert it to magic. Bella begged the Regent to undo their magic as she couldn't do it herself and would likely only be able to do that herself once she had given birth.

Magic didn't work that way, unfortunately. No, Bella knew that. Kol had already told her that. But it still had been worth the try. Madame La Rue agreed with Kol in believing that it was a time related spell and that eventually Myriam would go back to her own body. Seeing how upset Bella was by the whole thing, she also cast a minor spell on Bella to block the magic from the would-be terror twins in her womb. What if they'd do it again?

By the end of the week, Myriam and Aurora did indeed swap back and seeing as Aurora was still trying to get her bearings, Myriam could kill her easily. A dinner was thrown to celebrate Myriam's return and the end of the trio, and while the whole situation had been embarrassing, it had been a _great_ prank, and Kol was walking around like a proud daddy which annoyed Myriam and forced them to come clean about it all.

"If they do something like this again, I will be the evil aunt!" Myriam threatened before gently tapping on Bella's ever growing belly. "You hear me, Chip and Dale? Do that again and you will be sorry for the rest of your lives!" She then looked at Bella. "And you. Just don't even attempt of using your gifts because I think that's what set those two in there off."

"Ah, she may have to use it one more time," Elijah pointed out. "She turned our sister Freya into a tortoise."

"And she'll stay that way," Myriam growled. "Weren't you moving out, Elijah?"

December came and went; Christmas was incredibly elaborate with the gift exchange being mostly toys, clothes and items for the babies. Not even born and already spoilt rotten. On top of that, Hades and Helios both showered her and Kol with gifts too; in some cases quite literally and Bella had oh so much tried to keep calm and accept it all, but eventually she burst out in anger and decided not to leave the apartment again until it was time for her to give birth or perhaps go to the hospital.

She sometimes joked that it felt as if there were more babies kicking inside of her, no doubt she was black and blue on the inside by now, and Kol always paled and told her that it wasn't fun to joke about it. It was impossible. Multiple times they had witch healers check up on her and they confirmed two babies all the time. Even Helios, whose visits came more frequently now because Bella did need her dad-NotDad, told her that she had nothing to worry about, that they were merely going to be two strong human beings.

Helios and Hades had both loved the prank the boys had pulled on Myriam, though, and were disappointed that the unborn babies were rendered useless in Bella's womb by the Regent per Bella's request. Bella found it tiring to explain time and again that they hadn't bound their powers, merely made sure that they didn't share it with the rest of the world because they were still in the womb and didn't know better - granted, Bella knew that they were likely going to be a handful anyway once she had pooped them out and she was more than likely going to convince Kol about binding their powers until they were old enough.

From all the books she had read by now - and of course hearing stories from her readers, twins were a handful. Add to that magic and them being a Mikaelson… she was in for a nightmare. Luckily Kol _wanted_ to be included in everything, and she suspected he wasn't going to leave most of the caring up to her. And if he was, he was going to be sorry.

Bella sent out a blog every two weeks with a baby update; pictures of new things she and Kol had either bought or received or general updates about how she was feeling and what the two creatures in her stomach were up to. She had accumulated a large pool of baby names - mostly girls names because her readers wished for her to have girls, and none of the names fancied her and Kol.

Perhaps it was a little late in the game now to still think of names, but it wasn't easy. While Kol didn't have a direct connection with the Old World - Scandinavia, he did want to honor his heritage by having at least one name from there and it just didn't fit with other names. Yet. Bella had veto'ed Erik, or Eric, because she didn't want to risk their son to become an evil warlock or something.

"What about Colby?" Bella randomly asked as she pointed at a website with Old Norse names. "Sure, it's something about Darkness and all but I really like the name," she then smirked. "It's something like Kol jr, but then better!"

"Will we write it with a K then too, darling?" he replied as he set down a glass of fresh orange juice. "Kolby."

"If you'd like…"

"Very well, put that on our list then."

There was one name she had wanted to offer for ages now, but felt a bit silly about it. About the reason behind it all, but now that they were talking about this again anyway… "And I like the name Charlie."

Kol sat down next to her and looked at her for a moment before a big smile erupted on his face. "Charlie and Kolby. I like it."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," he softly kissed her. "Wow, this took us months of work and then… all of a sudden we have it! Charlie and Kolby Mikaelson. Sounds great! The right fit and everything," he kissed her again, harder this time. "You are absolutely brilliant, but why didn't you come up with Charlie before? I thought that name was on the 'no' list?"

She sighed and ruffled his hair. "Because I don't want to be cheesy. I like the name though, and he's… well he was a father to me even though I found out he wasn't."

"Gotcha," he replied with a nod. "Are you comfortable here? Or would you like me to move you to the bed so you can rest some more?"

"I'm fine, I have juice," she responded and gently caressed his cheek. Kol was heading out, most likely to have some fun chasing some people around or to do something for Klaus. She didn't mind, he was anxious for the inevitable birth of the babies and she tried to be as calm as possible as not to fuel his anxiety even further. When he took a break from her, she could take a break from controlling herself. "Bring me back a few beignets?"

"As many as you wish, darling. I won't be long."

"Take as long as you need."

He placed her laptop in front of her and kissed her before heading off. Bella let out a breath and gently caressed her bulging stomach. She had a feeling that the boys wouldn't wait for much longer to come out, despite them not having turned and settled as yet. There were feet kicking against her ribs, alright, but there were still feet downstairs too, and in the wrong position.

Oh, she knew she had nothing to worry about. Her midwives were two very excited vampires and aunties, there was enough vampire blood around to help heal the babies should it be needed. Bella was an immortal demi-Goddess and she couldn't die. No, worst case scenario would be that she'd be in labor for days without any form of pain relief being able to help her. And that was what scared her. The babies hadn't turned, but she also felt, almost like an instinct, that they weren't going to keep the world waiting for them any longer.

Bella decided to, once again, put her fears into a short story. She didn't really have time to write lately, but she felt guilty for her readers; still stemming from the 2 year long absence which hadn't been her fault, so she kept banging out short stories instead of the long, complicated ones that required at least some planning.

She liked sharing things with them, without going in too much detail, without ever showing her face. The only place she'd been recognized by her pen name was at that convention in Las Vegas because people were loving her stories and praising her and Myriam had pointed out proudly that CeilingCat was her bestie, her wifey and RIGHT THERE. Even when sharing belly updates, Bella made sure nobody was in the picture, her face wasn't in the picture and no identifiable objects were there.

And she didn't do it this way because of the status of her family; vampires, immortals, tortoises or Gods and Titans, but because she really liked her privacy. She didn't even share her location, but since a lot of her stories were featured in New Orleans and with the right amount of details that some writers didn't get, the observant readers would know. She didn't care.

Once she was mobile again to walk around, she was going to take the babies for a stroll and learn more about the city. Its history. Find the places that Klaus, Myriam, Elijah and Rebekah helped build. She had already seen a lot of the city, courtesy of her boyfriend, but they've spent more time travelling away from it than to actually stay. He didn't like the city very much and she wanted the kids to grow up with grass. Maybe they could explore the edges of the city where there was more nature but still a good connection to the center.

But for that, there wasn't a rush. First, the babies needed to be born and they had to become parents. Parents. Capital P. She was going to be a Mom to twins and currently writing a short where Twilight's Bella Swan had had sex with Jacob the werewolf and Edward the vampire, how the dna of the two intertwined and Bella gave birth to a monster that ripped open her stomach, killing Bella instantly without any hope of resuscitation, the monster running loose and killing everyone in Forks before Sam and Dean Winchester finally arrived to hunt the monster down and kill it.

And it was satisfying.

She finished drinking her juice after hitting 'publish' on the story and then slowly managed to get to her feet to go to the bathroom. She felt as if she was the size of a semi-truck, growing wider and wider by the day, taking kidney shots and a head on her bladder. She really wasn't sure what direction the boys were in anymore. Bella thought she had it all figured out but she was dead wrong.

And it sucked, just a little, that she hadn't stayed in contact with her 'mother', especially after everything that happened in her life, but Renee never really… she thought that magic and all other things were dangerous. How was Bella going to explain to her that she wasn't really her biological mother but that a Titan had fucked with her head to raise his granddaughter and that it was likely that Renee was a low level witch with the only instinct was that she had to run from anything remotely supernatural. Renee would run from her now too, wouldn't she? Without really understanding why? And it wasn't as if Bella could tell her all of this, unless she'd be compelled. Kol once told her that Renee was likely easy to compel despite her being a witch. She was untrained. Low on the totem pole and more human than witch.

And while Renee hadn't given birth to Bella, only remembered doing so, Bella felt that she needed to tell her mom at least that she was pregnant with twins. And, that if she wanted, she could come to New Orleans to visit once they were born. Or something.

And that could also be a very bad idea, but Bella found herself crying on her toilet, missing her mother all of a sudden. Surely she could tell her mother everything without telling her _everything_?

She fumbled her phone out of her pocket and wondered why her mother hadn't called her over the last years, either. Granted, Bella was 'out of contact' for 2 years, but there had been no missed calls. She let out a soft grunt when one of the boys kicked against her kidney again and sighed. Bella was going to be the better person between her and her mother and call her. Now. On the toilet. Because she couldn't be bothered to move right now and it was likely that her bladder wasn't completely empty anyway.

" _Hello."_ It felt good to hear her mother's voice again and Bella nearly burst out in tears again.

"Hi, Mom," she said softly.

" _Bella! Oh my God, it's you! How are you, sweetheart? We haven't spoken in so long!"_

"Well, you could have called, too," she pointed out.

" _You're absolutely right, I suppose you've got your independence from me, and not your father,"_ Renee chuckled. " _Phil and I live in Los Angeles now, and it's amazing. He's doing well with his baseball career and I hope you're ready to become a big sister!"_

Bella gasped in shock. "You're pregnant? Aren't you like… old?"

" _Surrogate. Phil's sperm, donor eggs and a surrogate. And we got lucky with our surrogate too. And the eggs. And… we're just very lucky, aren't you happy for me?"_

"Of course, mom," Bella replied. "I am very happy for you and I can't wait to become a big sister," she managed to pull up her underwear and started to waddle out of the bathroom. "I'm living in New Orleans now."

" _Bella… that was the one place I never wanted you to go to."_

"I know, but I found what I needed in Mystic Falls, and while I still have my little house there, my _destiny_ brought me to New Orleans, and we're traveling the world, have fun, see things, do things…"

" _That is great honey, who is the lucky man?"_

"His name is Kol," she looked at the guy in question as he walked in, all bloody and looking incredibly high and handsome. "And he's a very messy eater," she giggled as she put her phone on speaker. "But he really takes care of me, protects me and Charlie loves him."

"Who are you talking to, darling?" Kol's eyes sparkled as he inched closer to her, wrapping his arms around her frame and started to nip at her neck.

"My mother," Bella replied and laughed when Kol immediately let go of her. "She's pregnant. Well, she isn't, but someone else is pregnant for her," she explained. "Imagine that, I called her to get an update and I'm turning into a big sister!"

He nearly let out some negativity about mothers and how absent hers had been before she realized she'd been crying and needed some human comfort, something not even Charlie could give to her. "Want me to invite Cami over? I'm sure she can tear herself away from my brother and her bar long enough-"

"It's fine," she replied and gently nudged him towards the bedroom to get changed.

Kol scowled and hated his own thoughts right now. "Invite her over. I want to meet her."

" _That is very kind of you, but I don't go to New Orleans. Bad vibes all around, doesn't feel safe even though I have a baseball player for a husband!"_

"Mom lives in Los Angeles."

"Then we'll head to Los Angeles sometime next year when the twins are born and ready to travel long distances," Kol softly kissed her as Bella winced. "Oh, you didn't tell her?"

"Mom's expecting, of course I didn't…"

" _Twins? Bella? Are you going to make me a grandmother? But I'm too young for that! You're too young! You can't! Oh my God, you're pregnant. Baby, come to LA so I can be with you and help you."_

Bella looked at Kol's retreating back with a look on her face that said it all. _Really?_ "I'm huge, mom," she forced out a laugh. "I'm not going to travel."

" _But you can't have the babies in New Orleans!"_

"New Orleans is safe, mom. Safer than ever. It's safer with me in it. We're fine, we're safe and we're going to have a beautiful family. You're more than welcome to visit and if not, like Kol said, you'll just have to wait until we feel confident enough we can travel with the twins," she said curtly, now wondering why on Earth she called her mother, despite Charlie's - Helios' - asking her to multiple times and wanting to have her little human moment.

It was this exact phone call that made Bella realise that her human days were over. That while she and Kol enjoyed living as human as possible, that it just wasn't in the cards anymore. The babies were going to be witches. Their dad was a vampire and their mother a demi-Goddess. Their aunts and uncles vampires, the more extended family Greek Gods and Titans. The regent was likely going to be their fairy Godmother or something. There wasn't any room for humans like her mother. Not anymore. Now the realisation had to stick around permanently and not that she'd forget due to being pregnant or something. That'd be stupid.

And it sucked. But it had to end. "I love you, mom, and I hope that my baby sister comes into this world safely. I'll call you when I do," she said as she disconnected the call and followed Kol into the bedroom where he was undressing himself to change into something clean. "Hold me?"


	39. Chapter 39

She'd had false labor pains for a couple of days now, Bella had freaked out at first, but Rebekah had assured her that it was merely her body trying to get herself ready for labor. And that scared her, because, to Bella's knowledge, the babies hadn't turned properly and it made her feel anxious. They felt comfortable where they were, kicking against her sides or taking kidney shots. The rib shots were short and less painful but whatever it was, her body was far from ready to give birth to these two assholes.

They weren't ready, either.

But, when the contractions didn't go away after distracting herself at the end of January, she started to get worried. Granted, they had worked so hard to make sure that she had the right coping skills to deal with the pain - with her status as a demi-goddess modern medicine and magic didn't work - but nobody had listened to her when she said that the babies weren't in the right position yet.

Kol had made a joke out of it, said that if needed, they'd go in and turn the babies around to pull them out. With their hands. She'd be in a lot more pain, but at least the babies would be healthy. Bella felt that now that she was so close to having to push them out, that everyone had abandoned her. She was going to be fine, after all, she couldn't die. Rebekah had even muttered the dreaded words; _Stop being so human, because you're not._

And it sucked that because of her size, Bella couldn't go anywhere other than walking around in circles in the courtyard; climbing the stairs wasn't going to be a smart idea, and she hated this. She couldn't sit. She couldn't lay down, she couldn't take a shower because that would mean she'd have to undress and then dress herself again - there was no way in hell she was going to walk around naked for all to see.

Bella was so tired after not getting enough sleep in the last few weeks and now that it was all seemingly starting, she'd wished that someone would have knocked her out with a hammer so she could have rested. Her anxiety wasn't helping with this. And she should definitely stop feeling sorry for herself and complain. It was a miraculous thing after all; her body had been baking two babies for the last few months, babies conceived due to a Greek God being bored.

Where was Hades anyway?

Kol and Myriam were leaning over the first floor balcony to watch Bella move about. They had both offered to help her but she was a furious little thing who looked to be very close to tears and had opted to watch her from a distance instead. "How long does labor usually take?"

Myriam looked at him, stupefied. "Didn't you read the books?"

"Well, yes, but it's all contradictory. Some women had very short labors, others very long and had to go to hospital to get help. We can't take Bella to a hospital," he replied as he ran a hand through his hair. "And it bloody sucks that we can't even hear their heartbeats to make sure that they're fine. We may be trying to tell her that everything's going to be alright and all to keep her calm and relatively sane, but I'm freaking out here, Myr."

"Klaus is already sharpening his best knives. He offered to get the swords out but decided that he didn't want to scare Bella even further," she deadpanned. "Cami is working on something too. I have no idea what, but she says she found a way to help Bella."

"How? She's a fragile little human. Don't get me wrong, Myriam, I absolutely adore Cami for all that she's done for Nik and the rest of the family but in this case, she should stay away and let us handle this."

"Yes, and you've proven to have such a great success without some humanity around you," she rolled her eyes at him. "Don't worry, Rebekah, Cami and I have got this. All we need to make sure of is that Bella won't explode and get baby splatter all over the furniture and stuff."

"That's just wrong," Kol said before jumping over the balcony railing and landed next to Bella, who was still pacing around at a very slow pace. Waddling. Penguin. "Let's hijack Nik's jacuzzi."

"Too much effort."

"But you'll feel much better and I'll help you," he said gently as he put an arm around her. "I can lift you and carry you. Please, Bella, stop being so stubborn and allow me to help you. You're obviously in pain and uncomfortable."

Bella scowled as she angrily looked at him. "I'm angry with our unborn children for wanting to come out when they're nowhere near where they're supposed to be! You know, heads should be down to the pelvic area, not somewhere to the side or feet first. I want meds, but they won't work."

"I know, but you've been pushing me away. You've been pushing everyone away and that wasn't part of the deal," he gently lifted her up. "Come on, let's get you into that wonderful jacuzzi and maybe we can trick the boys into turning a little too."

"I want it to stop."

"I know," he said again before taking the stairs with her. She looked tired and miserable and he wished he could help her. "Do you want some of my blood to see if that works?"

Bella seemed to think for a moment. "Healing properties, don't think that's wise, but I appreciate the thought." Oh, she felt extremely uncomfortable with Kol carrying her up the stairs, but perhaps he was right, a warm jacuzzi could do wonders for her. In any case, he wanted to help her and she needed to allow him to; he was the only one who could properly stop herself from going insane from all the thinking and worrying.

Kol gently lowered her back to the ground and after making sure she wouldn't fall over, he started to run the bath before turning back to her with a big smirk on his face as he watched her deal with another contraction. "It's a good thing you're not wearing any pants. I do love these wrap around dresses…"

"You are so lucky that I can't do anything right now or else I would have made you feel what I feel," she said through gritted teeth as she held on to the towel rack for some stability as the contraction passed again. "I actually might make you feel this when I'm back to usual…"

"Happy thoughts," he grinned as he peeled off her dress. "Look at you being all gorgeous and gloriously naked," Kol gently put his hand on her stomach and looked surprised when he ended up holding onto a small foot. It had happened before, but it felt strange. Out of place. "Uhh…"

"Uhuh," Bella replied as she pointed at the foot. "Not where it's supposed to be. I've been telling you, the babies aren't ready."

He let go of her and tried the water before helping her into the bath. "But your body says they're done cooking, so we have to roll with it. Darling, you _can_ be affected by alcohol so if we have to, we'll make you so drunk that you won't feel a thing when I turn them around and help them out."

"Still, the whole idea of having hands inside of me…" Bella shivered before trying to relax in the water, it did feel nice and the bubbles weren't too hard on her now. "Oh…"

"See? Better already," he smiled at her before squatting down next to the bath and leaning onto the edge with his arms. "You're not in this alone, Bella. My job is to make things easier for you, remember? And I know you're worried and you're in pain and you're tired and frustrated, but you're not alone," he poured some water over her head and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "Do you still feel the babies?"

"Yeah… I think they're trying to move but are stuck or something…" She then looked up in fear. "What if this kills them?"

"Shh," Kol soothed her. "Just relax. They're all looking for solutions, even Cami, but you know what I realized? We're all so bloody dense sometimes!" He then started to laugh. "Oh Bella, we're idiots!"

"I know that, why are we idiots this time?" She found the delirious look on his face confusing, it was a welcome change and distraction, but why? "Because we haven't been thinking this through entirely? Not anticipated the babies being uncooperative?"

He smirked and poked her with his index finger. "Darling, we've been trying to live as human as possible because you're comfortable with it and I'm quite enjoying myself but you're not human."

"No, but-" she stopped herself from continuing the sentence; 'but apart from the immortality, the babies took away my powers'. "Fucker," Bella muttered as she hit herself with the palm of her hand and wanted to get up to get out of the tub, but decided that she quite liked this short reprieve of pain. "Five more minutes."

"You could call him now?"

"And have him see me naked? No fucking way!" Bella huffed as she shifted a little so that she was more comfortable as another contraction washed over her. "Fucker," she groaned. "You really think he can help?"

"If not, he likely knows someone who can," Kol said reassuringly. "Don't worry, if he comes up with nothing I'll gladly punch him again."

"Oh, believe me, once I'm back to what I can do, I will give him a true piece of my mind!" She then glared at Kol. "This isn't happening again, you're hearing me? If this happens again, I will tear off your dick and make you eat it!"

"You're so turning me on right now," Kol smirked as he pushed another strand of hair out of her face. "Want me to help you out of the tub so we can get this over with? I have to admit, I'm quite anxious to meet our Kolby and Charlie."

"But I'm comfortable right now…"

"And you'll be more comfortable once they are out of you."

"Yeah…" she sighed with a nod. "You're right," she slowly got to her feet and allowed Kol to lift her out of the tub before he helped her dry herself off. "I hate this."

"I know," he softly kissed her. "But I really like it - apart from the whole you being in pain thing. Helping you, that's what I like. I get to inappropriately touch you as often as you allow me to."

"You can touch me inappropriately whenever you want to," she giggled and got back into her dress. "This body is yours, but you're never going to enter it again without a raincoat on unless we're very certain Hades can be trusted," she gently pat his cheek. "Unless you want me to tear off your dick or turn it into an animal."

"I see one additional problem with that, darling," Kol said as he gently lifted her up and brought her back to their apartment. "You love my dick too much."

"I can return it to you when I want to have fun with it. Or, make a mold of it and have some sex shop turn it into a dildo. There are ways," she growled lowly as another contraction passed. "This is not going to happen again."

Kol laughed and paused for a moment at their door to turn around and address his sibling and their friend. "Beks and Myr, we need your help shortly!" He called out before getting inside and sat Bella down in her favourite chair. "Comfy?"

"I will be shortly," she replied as she gripped the chair when a foot or two hit her in the ribs. "See, this isn't fair. My body wants them out but they're far from ready."

"Call him."

"Hades, you fucker, you'd better come here right now and get your jokes out of me!"

"No need to shout," Hades' voice sounded as he materialized in front of her. "I've been here all along, keeping an eye out."

"And you didn't think to come out of hiding to help me before? Instead you watched me suffer?"

"Yep, all part of the human experience," Hades said smug and ducked when Bella threw the nearest heavy object - a book - at him. "Relax, if they were in any danger, I would have."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I am not your plaything. We are not your playthings. Next time you're bored, go bother some mortal but you're not going to mess with me again or there will be consequences."

Hades barked out a laugh. "I'd like to see you implement those consequences, you're a Demi-goddess, capital D, lower case g. You are capable of so much and you had me take most of it away, or at least tuck it away, because you're a scared little human. Embrace who you are and I might consider your request," he said as he saw Kol coming for him and slammed him against the wall. "Nice try," he held him against the wall as if he was considering something before releasing him. "Interesting," he eventually commented as he looked at Bella. "That magical barrier you've put up around the babies has been a good idea, they are powerful witches."

"Get. Them. Out."

"Will do, just waiting for your midwives," Hades smirked as he looked at the door and as if right on cue, Rebekah and Myriam entered the home. "Greetings little vampires, I'm Hades. Care to play catch? Musical babies, perhaps?"

"Hades!" Bella growled at him. "Now!" Between the pain and Hades' arrogance, Bella wasn't sure what was worse, but she wanted him gone as soon as possible. She was done with this. All of it. She'd be happy once she'd be able to hold her children and free of contractions or those little aches she'd been getting everywhere.

Just like magic - but it obviously wasn't magic - the contractions disappeared, her skin retracted as if she hadn't been pregnant and all the pain was gone. She looked at Myriam and Rebekah who were both holding a very clean baby, and then Kol, who was looking stumped and holding another one. "It's… it's uhh… a third one," he stammered as he looked at it, before smiling widely at Bella and bringing the baby over. "It's a girl!"

"What?"

"Now, first off," Hades said as he looked at the stunned vampires and Bella. "Congratulations. They're all very healthy. Secondly, I told you, they're very powerful witches. The girl has the natural ability to hide from any kinds of magic or even detection by a God, this makes her really safe. This is why we didn't detect her when we confirmed your pregnancy. Her brothers have it too, in some shape, but their magic is the strongest and don't need a defense mechanism as much as their sister does. But make no mistake, she'll be a great witch in her own right. All three very powerful Mikaelson witches and they're your responsibility. Don't fuck it up. Good luck and I'll be back in a couple of months or something to see how you're doing!" Hades grinned as he waved and poofed out.

"Three." Bella said slowly as she looked at the baby girl in her arms, she looked absolutely beautiful and observant already, her gaze intensely focused on her. "Three babies."

"Yeah, I know, right?" Kol smiled at her as he took one of the boys from Rebekah. "They're perfect!"

Oh, the little girl had Bella wrapped around her little finger already. "Yeah, but how are we going to take care of three babies when we only bought stuff for two? And boys at that? We don't have clothes for her! Or a cot! We need more diapers, more bottles, more of everything!" She felt slightly panicked as she looked at Kol. "And we didn't even think of girl names!"

"Hey, relax, that's what we're here for," Rebekah assured her as she took the other boy from Myriam and helped Bella to hold two babies. "Myr and I love to shop, especially for a little girl! This is great news! And don't worry, Bella, we were already going to help you and Kol with the boys, we can handle one extra baby. You can handle one extra baby. You're going to be great."

"Yes!" Myriam agreed. "Before we leave, though, I'm going to share this news with Klaus and make sure that nobody comes here. Just me and Rebekah to bring you your things. You and Kol need some time alone with the babies. Go bond. Go talk. Enjoy these bundles of joy and appreciate the fact that you're looking as if you haven't carried these yourself." She planted a big kiss on Bella's cheek before pulling Rebekah out of the apartment, leaving Bella and Kol with their three babies.

Bella was quiet for a moment as she looked at the two babies in her arms, and then at Kol who was looking smitten with the boy in his arms. "Holy shit, we're parents."

* * *

 **A/N:** Sorry for the long wait, guys, I am in the process of moving houses and my computer is currently still in pieces because there's no room to put it yet. I'm posting this update from my crappy laptop :)

In case you also read Between Heaven And Hell by myself and meeko under our penname Meekobuggy (it's also a Bella/Kol!), I uploaded the wrong chapter before and switched it with the right one last week. Moving houses makes brains melt.

Also, if you've enjoyed reading my story Intermission last year (it's up here on ffnet too), you might like to hear that I'm adding more to it. The first part has already been uploaded!

Divine Happenstance will have a total of 41 chapters. We're nearing the end! Yikes!


	40. Chapter 40

While Bella hadn't really liked the idea very much of staying longer at the compound than necessary at first, she was grateful with all the help the family gave her and Kol with the triplets. Kolby and Charlie, the boys, and Emily, their little girl. All hands were on deck when needed. Especially when the remaining Strix came to retaliate for all the deaths that they had suffered by the hands of the Mikaelsons.

The babies were less than a month old then, and with Bella back to full power she had no problem with rendering the mass of vampires useless and making it easier to get rid of them all. The only downside was that it required a great amount of energy and she needed to rest up for days afterwards - making her more determined to become who she was meant to be and embrace every aspect of her being. Maybe not the raising the dead and seeing ghosts thing. That could prove to be annoying as hell with little kids running around and dead people in the way.

Their house wasn't entirely new, but that was more than alright. They lived near several parks in Audubon and that was all the grass Bella wanted. Their property was huge, even after some modifications to make sure it was big enough and secure enough for their little family. Their home was on 2 acres of land, fenced and their own security system - it was something Bella wanted despite her and Kol being more than capable of taking care of themselves. They had to blend in and nearly all their neighbors had security.

Something Kol loathed. It meant that he had to go further away for his kills, but Audubon was better than the burbs like Lakeview.

For the pretense of normality, the current regent of the witches - a young girl named Selene, someone Bella had an easier time with to talk to than Ms. La Rue - had cast a boundary spell on the property for the growing magic of the children. If they'd do something magical within those boundaries, the humans wouldn't notice.

There was a courtyard outside, and their back garden was very green with trees and flowers and grass with a nice patio to overlook the garden while relaxing. And of course, the heated pool and sauna were a luxury but Bella had found that she'd loved swimming when she was pregnant - and of course, Kol saw it as a challenge to have sex with Bella there.

The grand entrance had a spiral staircase to the first floor of the house, and several doors leading to rooms. A large den to hang out in and the kitchen was something Bella had wanted and was remodeled to her wishes. A nice big table for the entire family to sit on made it complete.

There was a balcony at the front of the house and two at the back; one attached to the master bedroom and big enough to sleep outside if Bella and Kol wanted to. The one at their room overlooked the back garden, the play area specifically.

The house had all modern comforts; air conditioning. Central Heating. 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and it all looked quite woodsy. Modern, but with a natural flair. Earthy, was the best way to describe it all, and ever since moving out from the compound and their apartment, it truly felt like a home and Bella didn't wished to ever leave their spot again.

After they had lived at the house for a full year, and miraculously not having one of the kids drown in the pool, Bella felt that the time was right to learn things. But on her terms and had Hades come to her for practise instead of the other way around. She didn't want to miss a single moment in the life of her children and they were basically Hades' fault anyway so he had to spend some time with them as well.

Then one day after some gruelling exercises thought up by Hades, Bella was relaxing in the pool while Kol and the children went to visit their aunts and uncles at the compound. She needed a day for herself and Kol was more than willing to give that to her; he admired her so much and his admiration grew by the day. Of course, she was no witch, but to see what she was capable of was simply blowing his mind and he couldn't help but to be in awe. She had excellent control and she was a good mother to his children, he was more than content.

She outwardly cursed when someone was at the gate in the front, and after covering herself up, she wished that it weren't sales people or recruitment people because she'd invite them in and turn them into goats to mow the lawn for her. She was surprised to see Jasper Whitlock at the fence. At least she believed it was Jasper when she first laid eyes on him, and his companion looked a lot like the vampire Peter. Curious, she didn't open the gate to let them in, but decided to find out what they wanted from her.

"Ma'am, both Peter and I are well aware of who you are, and he decided that today was a good day to offer our services and loyalty to you and your mate," Jasper said kindly. "You, as what you are, deserve to be worshipped like they used to in the olden days, despite that you're not a full God. The name's Jasper Whitlock, ma'am."

"Oh hell no," Bella breathed out, shaking her head. "You're not coming here to tell me you want to kiss my ass."

"We want to serve you," Peter replied, the intonation clear on _serve_. "We want to provide more security for you and your family and we don't mind doing household chores, either."

"No."

"Your mate didn't seem to think it was a bad idea, likely because he wants to have a few vampires under his own control and not having to rely on his brother's," Peter pointed out.

Jasper's grin grew wide. "We've spoken to him first. He actually compelled us to stay here even when you would reject us."

"I'm going to kill him," Bella muttered as she shook her head and made her way back to the pool. She was going to give Kol hell when he came home. While yes, he had often spoken about wanting to have a small army of vampires at his disposal mainly for safety, Bella didn't think it was necessary. But then again, having a few flunkies around meant that should something happen again like the mass attack from the Strix, there'd be redshirts around to help out. She and Kol were, after all, quite awhile from the French Quarter and despite all the modern technology and magic on their property, it was safer.

She just hated the idea. Where were those vampires going to stay?

Still, Bella was curious and decided to visit the realm in between where she could go and spy on people like the Gods did. Like Hades did all the time. She wanted to know more about Jasper and Peter. Why now?

"... even more beautiful than I imagined," Jasper said as he casually leaned against the fence, doing as he was told to by Kol. "You can tell that she has grown into herself."

"Still, hard to imagine that someone as tiny as her is so powerful. She made sure that the Mikaelsons got rid of the Cullens and then fought the entirety of the Strix!"

Jasper nodded. "It's been a very long time since someone like her walked the Earth. The Greek Gods were never the friendliest and their offspring was even worse, but she's kindhearted and graceful. Family is everything to her."

Peter snorted. "I never understood your fascination with the Greek Gods, brother, but I suppose we have to do _something_ with our eternal lives."

"I should have realized earlier that there was another demi-God on this Earth, the signs were all there. I mean, Charlie Swan smelled like sunshine and sand and occasionally cookies, far from a normal scent on a human. If I had known, I could have saved Bella's father perhaps."

"Jazz, you can't be in multiple places at once and to be fair, Alice Cullen had wrapped so tightly around her fingers…"

"She was a mistake, I thought I needed to be in Forks, and I believed for her. I was wrong."

"Charlotte can make mistakes, you know. She's not infallible."

"I don't blame her. Never speak ill of the dead you loved."

Peter scowled. "I wish I could have killed Emmett myself."

"Don't we all?" Jasper laughed, shaking his head as he shifted his stance, looking around as if he was sensing something and Bella decided to stand next to Peter instead. There was no way that they could know that she was around.

"Ya reckon we scared her off by how we introduced ourselves?"

He let out a breath and nodded. "However, she didn't turn us into animals or threw us across the street. That's a start. And once her mate comes back home with their children and explains it all, I believe she'll turn around."

"What if she doesn't?"

"We'll offer our allegiance to Klaus Mikaelson and stick around anyway. This family is special and need all the protection they can get, despite what they already implemented. Those children will grow up to be very powerful and they will come for them," Jasper said solemnly. "Original Vampire or not, he's still a vampire and can be subdued by vervain or distracted by a simple stake. And there are still devices around that can subdue a God, no doubt it works on demi-Gods as well. Kol Mikaelson hates having to rely on his whimsical brother - although the woman has mellowed him out - and wants his own vampires."

"And who better to lead them than the Major, right?" Peter laughed, shaking his head. "I dig New Orleans, I can see us be really happy here."

"Exactly."

Bella let out a breath as she processed the words and nodded. Jasper was right. The safety of her children was at stake and these two knuckle heads wanted to be protectors. She wasn't sure if she could trust them, perhaps they were going to steal her children from her, but allegiance could be compelled and if Kol wanted them around, he was going to compel them to be loyal to them only for the sake of the children. Trust was something to be earned and no matter how much Bella had liked Book!Jasper, reality was something entirely different.

A year later, Bella was actually glad with her decision of having Jasper and Peter join them. Together with Kol they found the right vampires to look out for them. Kol liked to boast that his small group of vampires were better than Klaus' army.

The triplets were four years old now, and walking like maniacs, it was like herding cats every time they went shopping for food and while Bella didn't like to bring them to the shops, she also knew that the world was bigger than their home and garden and the kids had to learn. But oh boy.

For the past few years, after their battle with the Strix, Elijah's mental stability had started to fade, a worry for the entire family because Elijah was usually the rock of the family, the glue. Especially in their early days, before Myriam came around, and far before Bella came around. At first it were tiny anger outbursts, tantrums much like Klaus and Kol could have. They didn't think any different of it other than raising an eyebrow when Elijah ate his way through a dance club. But when it happened again, Klaus and Myriam started to keep a closer eye on Elijah, until he finally snapped and in his uncontrollable rage killed the only non-Supernatural human in the family; Cami. He tore right into her during family dinner, in front of the kids.

Knowing that all the daggers were out of Klaus' reach, Bella reached into the in between realm where she'd put Kol's in her sock - unknown to him she had it on her always, so that it couldn't get lost or stolen - and immediately daggered Elijah. There hadn't been anything Bella could have done, there hadn't been a dark aura around him so she could cleanse him, but it was something inside his own mind, and she couldn't get there. Her illusions hadn't been able to reach him.

While her children were no doubt going to be subjected to vampire violence more often, they were too young to have experienced this, but fortunately Bella managed to convince them that it had been only play and that there was nothing wrong with Auntie Camille, because despite the fact that Bella didn't want to see spirits, she did retain the ability to pull someone back from the dead, it just worked differently now. She wanted it to have limitations; only people she deeply cared about and it had to cost her more. Such as sleeping for a whole day or two. This way she couldn't abuse it and nobody could coerce her to abuse it.

So for the triplets it was all play, and they applauded when their aunt Camille got back to her feet immediately and Kol made a joke about putting their tired uncle Elijah in a bed as he dragged him off. Everyone was fuming and had to keep their emotions in check because the children were there, so Bella decided to take them home so that the vampires could freak out about their damaged brother.

Bella wished that she could have done something to help Elijah, but this was a magical problem for sure and she was going to ask Selene - the Regent's - help with this. With an unhinged Elijah walking around, New Orleans was no longer safe. Kol had a better bond with Selene now as well, certainly after all that she had done for them at their home when it came to magical protection and glamours to shield vampirism and magic from their neighbours, there was no doubt that he was going to pay her a visit before returning home.

Another year later, Elijah was still daggered, but his mind was in a much better place thanks to Selene and her covens. However, Cami was now afraid of him and Klaus promised Cami that he wouldn't undagger his brother unless she felt safe again. Bella and Kol both didn't mind if Elijah would stay boxed forever. He deserved a good rest, after all. Nobody liked him very much apart from Klaus and Cami. The only downside to Elijah's daggering was that Klaus now had a dagger back. Bella sure hoped that whenever Elijah's punishment was over, that she'd get it back to ensure that Kol would never be daggered again.

Selene was a fun regent, and often made house calls to teach the triplets to use their magic responsibly. Kol was very active with playing with the kids as well, as his knowledge of magic was enormous, but sometimes it was more educational to see the magic as well. Kol was happy about the relationship they had with Selene, and the mutual respect between everyone was very comforting. Unlike Madame La Rue, Selene wasn't worried about Bella abusing her Goddess powers and actually encouraged her to learn more and more - to grow.

Bella had started to homeschool the triplets, Rebekah and Myriam were keen participants as well, both having different interests and knowledge to impart on the children. Klaus loved to teach them all about art and culture and the children loved their Uncle Klaus to bits. Sometimes Bella had the feeling that she couldn't keep up with her five year olds. They were learning things quickly, and retained the information easily. Kol didn't seem to have the same difficulties with keeping up with them, which sometimes made her feel inadequate. She was smart, just in a very different way. Often she took the kids to the nearby Zoo to teach them all about animals and how they lived and if they were in danger of extinction. The Aquarium was fun too.

She also made sure that every child got one on one time with her or Kol. Emily loved horses, and Bella often took her to the riding school for a lesson or two; she always promised not to practice magic outside and was a very responsible five year old, Kolby and Charlie were more mischievous and Bella sometimes wanted to paste them behind the wallpaper for causing such a ruckus every now and then. She couldn't take them anywhere! They were always causing mischief and they knew very well that they shouldn't use their magic out in the open, but she couldn't actually stop them, either!

It was a warm summer's afternoon and Bella and Kol were in the backyard with the children and in the pool, having fun throwing them around and catching them, teaching them how to swim while having fun - and well covered with sun lotion. Cries of laughter and joy filled their backyard and the smiled on everyone's faces warmed Bella's heart to the brim. That was until Jasper respectfully joined them on the edge of the pool.

He and Peter had been lounging in the front yard with some beers, keeping an eye out like they usually did. All other of Kol's vampires lived away from the house, but for Peter and Jasper they had made an exception and had built a guesthouse for them to stay in. Bella had allowed them into her home after having warmed up to them, Jasper was much like the fictional Jasper, his humor was sharper though and he wasn't a tormented soul as such. Selene the Regent had surprised and shocked most of the witch community when she started to date Jasper _and_ Peter in a threesome, but she didn't care. Vampires and witches could coexist, many thanks to Bella and the Mikaelsons.

"Ma'am," Jasper said as he squatted down for Bella to swim to him. He had a smile on his face as he watched Kol play with the children, but she could tell by his tone of voice that something was up. "There's someone at the gate for you, a vampire, and he's very insistent on meeting with you. He says you know him and that you,quote - unquote, go way back."

"What's his name?"

"That's it, he didn't want to say, he said it would be a surprise."

Bella huffed as she pulled herself out of the pool and grabbed a towel to cover herself up. "I'll be right back," Bella smiled at Kol. "Do you think you can handle the three?"

"Nah, I'll drown one if I have to!" Kol laughed as Emily, Kolby and Charlie were using him as a flotation device. "Don't worry, I won't actually drown them or let them drown."

"You'd better not," Bella grinned as she followed Jasper to the front yard, where Peter was standing in front of their mystery guest, gate still closed. Peter's stance told her that he wasn't all too happy. "Relax, whoever he is, he can't come in unless I invite him in, remember?"

It was one of the best security inventions ever. She was part human, she hadn't died yet and the house and the land was in her name. With some magic, the invitations for the vampires had to happen at the gate. It was wonderful. Nice and quiet. Kept unwanted guests far away.

"You'd better invite me in because you neglected to tell me that we have a bigger family now!" The unknown vampire responded and Peter stepped away. The voice matched the face and Bella's grin grew wide.

"That depends, you're known for killing your relatives, what's stopping you from going after my kids?"

"You and that Original Oaf you're with. Now, invite me in Bella Swan Salvatore Mikaelson, or whatever you go by these days."


	41. Chapter 41

"What's he doing here?" Kol was less than friendly with their uninvited, but now invited, guest. He'd never liked Damon Salvatore much, although his appreciation had grown when he came to New Orleans after Bella had returned from Hades' kidnapping, but the idiot had neglected to contact Bella over the years while she sent him messages with updates.

Sensing their dad's hostility, the kids moved behind him, out of immediate sight. Bella was so proud.

"Found my phone," Damon said as he waved it around. "Conveniently left it at home when I was traveling the world with Elena. Nice to see you too, Kol. Love the house. Well done."

"And where is female Gilbert?" Kol questioned him from his position in the pool. "Did she feel too good to come down to New Orleans?"

"That's an interesting story," Damon agreed before motioning to the gaggle of children behind the Original. "But hardly a story for the youngsters, aren't you going to introduce me to the little miracles?"

Kol smirked widely. "Yep, can do that," he said as he turned around to face his kids. "Emily, Kolby and Charlie, you can use Uncle Damon as practise as to what Selene and I taught you to do to bad men."

"Really?" They chorused surprised. "You never allow us to practise on real people!"

"Uncle Damon can handle it, I promise. He's tougher than he looks."

"Should I be worried?" Damon asked Bella, who merely shrugged in return before going inside to fix the kids some drinks and snacks. When Kol moved away, Damon could see Bella's children clearly. They were the perfect mix of both parents, and he was afraid that those innocent looking faces were going to pack a mean punch. "They're witches, aren't they?"

"Yep," Kol grinned at the same time Damon doubled over when the kids directed their headache spell at him. "While we take extra security measures for them, they also know how to defend themselves, know this and remember that," he said before gently pushing the hands down and helping them out of the pool. "Well done guys! That was awesome! Now, I think mommy's making snacks inside, why won't you join her for a little? Uncle Jasper will be with you shortly I think, mommy and I need to talk to Uncle Damon."

"Is he a bad man, daddy?" Emily asked as Kol lifted her out of the pool.

"No bunny, no bad men will ever cross that threshold at the gate. You are safe here," he smiled at her. "I think mommy wants you to get to know Uncle Damon, but not now, not until we've spoken with him."

"Okay," she smiled as she ran inside the house. Kolby and Charlie followed soon after and as soon as they were out of earshot and vision, Kol punched Damon, hard.

"Ow! Why did you do that for?!"

"That's for worrying Bella sick all these years. Left your phone at home while you went off gallivanting with Elena? Have you completely lost your mind?! Honestly, here I thought you'd changed your egotistical ways with Bella in your life!"

"Yeah, fine, that was stupid! I admit that that was stupid and irresponsible! If it helps, I not only missed Bella's messages, but I also wasn't around when the devil himself came to town and recruited my brother, resulting in his death because he couldn't reach me!" Damon said as he pushed back. "What can I say? Love is bad for the brain, man!"

Kol huffed as he pushed Damon back. "If I can learn how to control my impulses, so can you!"

"Oh fuck off!"

"Are you two done?" Bella asked as she walked onto the patio with a drink for her and two glasses of blood for the vampires. "I'm sorry to hear about Stefan, Damon. I wasn't aware what was going on in Mystic Falls as nobody told me."

"Don't worry about it, Bonnie fixed it," he sighed, waving her sentiments away. "I've been stupid."

"And I'm not surprised," Bella replied kindly as she handed him his glass. "But a message would have been nice. Or a postcard at least. Not even that!"

Damon scowled as if he had been given a stern talking to by his mother. "Nice kids you have there. Your extended family?"

"Unfortunately," Bell nodded before smiling. "But they're awesome little humans, a handful though."

"No doubt."

They were quiet for a moment before Bella spoke up. "Where's Elena, Damon?"

"Also dead. We ran into the Cullens and Elena was drunk on blood and wanted to take them out for you. Big mistake and I nearly didn't make it myself," he downed his glass of blood and ran a hand through his hair. "I let myself be steered by grief and grief alone for a few years as I tried to find them all over the world. And as it turned out, you and your Originals did the world a favor by taking them all out 5 years ago! Robbing me from my revenge!"

"Oh, you poor baby," Bella sighed as she sat down next to him and hugged him. "I wish I could have done something for you."

"I'm not okay, Bella," Damon said angrily. "I've done some bad things over the last few years, head stuck in this dark pit until I heard your name in a whisper. How my crusade was useless because there wasn't anyone left for me to kill."

Bella nodded. This version of Damon was broken, this Damon was the one she read about in Stefan's journals, heard the stories of. "Did you come here for help?"

"Everything is so much better around you, even back when we didn't know what you were, you brought peace into my life… I don't know what I need… Help or death."

Bella looked at Kol who violently shook his head. "No way. There is no way that we're going to be responsible for him. We already have our kids and Jasper and Peter!"

"I think Jasper and Peter are exactly what Damon needs. The four of you can go hunting together and paint the town relatively red if you want," she smiled at him. "You like Damon."

"I don't! And he's not a puppy!"

"He's family," she stressed. "And while I've failed him in not being able to save his brother because I was unaware of the happenings in Mystic Falls, I will not stand for turning my back on Damon now, he came here. To us."

Kol scowled. "Fine, but he's staying with Jasper and Peter in their guesthouse. The house is ours!"

Bella smiled and kissed Damon's cheek. "You're going to be fine, Damon, I promise. Just don't hurt my kids or I will turn you into a goat and make you mow the lawn."

"I didn't know I needed help."

"You came here, right?" She beamed at him and ruffled his hair. "This is a safe place. Just don't pick a fight with Klaus or Rebekah because they'll eat you for lunch."

Damon smirked at that. "So your kids are witches."

"Yep," Bella relaxed into her chair and took a sip of her drink as she looked at Kol with a big smile on her face. "They take after their father in many ways. Very smart and hard to keep up with. And then the magic. We get plenty of help with that and Kol's a big help but it would be nice if a place like Hogwarts was real or something."

"Well…" Damon said carefully. "Look, our house is in your name and all, but so many things have happened in Mystic Falls that I told Ric that he could use the house for something good, something positive and he and Caroline turned it into a school for the gifted children. They get schooled in magic, artifacts, history and everything that's supernatural, aside from the normal school subjects like math and English. They have great teachers there."

"You're kidding."

"No, I'm not," Damon laughed and shook his head. "You like New Orleans too much anyway, I didn't want that house to be empty for years and it was time we Salvatores gave back to the world, just a little bit."

"I'm not going to leave my kids in the care of Ric and barbie Stefan," Kol scowled. "We're doing fine here."

Right at that moment Peter walked out of the house with burn marks over his body and his shirt torn. "Bloody gnats! That's the second shirt this week that they've ruined!"

"Go shirt shopping, we'll pay you back," Bella told him, shaking her head. Granted, most accidents happened to the vampires and Bella had been relatively safe, but it wasn't such a bad idea to send the kids off to school, was it? Normal children went to school as well.

"So what accidents happen? We're immortal," Kol shrugged. "No, the kids stay here."

"Or you could go back to Mystic Falls to teach magic to a whole gaggle of children," Damon winked at him. "I'll stay here and look after your girl."

"Fuck you Salvatore."

"Is it like a boarding school kinda school?" Bella asked thoughtfully. "Like home on weekends and holidays and shit?"

"I guess, but I'm the least capable person to talk to you about this, why won't you go and pay them a visit instead?"

"I might."

"You're seriously not considering this!" Kol was shocked. "Bella, they're our children."

"And children go to school. Our kids can't go to school because they like to do magic and we don't want to bind their powers. But if Damon's right and there's a school where they can be themselves, then why not? It'll allow them to socialize more with their peers, too." Bella explained carefully. "I love our children, Kol, as much as you do, but things are getting out of hand here."

"We'll discuss this later," he said as he downed his glass of blood. "I'll take Peter to get new shirts and do groceries. Jasper's inside with the kids."

"Yep," Bella sighed as she tiredly rubbed her face, unsure what to expect _later_. Yes, she loved her children dearly, as did Kol, and it would be hard to let them go somewhere without them, but they were in Mystic Falls, not half a country away. Both Bella and Kol could pop in anytime they wanted anyway, she now knew how to take him with her when needed and how to transport herself to somewhere else.

When Kol and Peter were out of earshot, Damon finally spoke up. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up."

"Oh, it's fine," Bella smiled at him. "Selene, the coven Regent here, had been talking about cooperating with an institute where they taught children with magic, but I wasn't sure until now that it was going to be Mystic Falls. Kol had been for the idea, so…" she shrugged. "Besides, sending your children off to school is part of the human experience, isn't it? It'll be good for them, and good for me and Kol."

"Why, are you guys having issues?"

"Nah," she shook her head laughing. "It's just that we rarely get the time alone with each other now that the kids are here. We can't simply go to Klaus and say, 'hey, take care of our kids for a few days, we need some us time'. With the kids gone during the week and actually have dedicated teachers… yeah… it sounds great. I do want to check it out and check the security of the place though."

Damon laughed and shook his head. "The school is run by a teacher turned vampire hunter turned teacher and a vampire. Jeremy Gilbert is the gym coach. Bonnie put some spells on the place to make it secure for all children and teaches magic. Kol loves Bonnie. He may not be a fan of Jeremy but eh, you win some, you lose some. The place is secure, Bella, don't you worry about that."

"I'll check it out for myself after I've spoken to Kol about this tonight," she replied as she finished her drink. "It's going to be hard enough to let them go anyway."

"It's just Mystic Falls, Bella," Damon smiled at her. "It'll be fine."

Bella went to check out the school the day after. After Caroline was done smothering her, Bella was given the grand tour. They had remodeled the boarding house some to make room for dormitories, showers and a dining hall and there were little classrooms on the first and second floor. The areas on the ground floor were common areas with the huge library and loads of places to sit in and hang out.

It felt strange to walk around on the grounds and not to fall back into memories. Her guesthouse was still there; and it was still locked. "Yeah! Totally forgot about that one! You could stay there if you want to be close to your young ones, I know they're quite young and you may not be entirely ready to let them go just yet, but they are safe here. From what you've told me about how you're doing things at home with them you've made a great start, but eventually they'll really outgrow you."

"Thanks for making me feel inadequate as a mother, Caroline," Bella chuckled as she opened the door to the guesthouse and got greeted with the scent of Cornucopias. "Go away Hades! I'm doing this on my own, leave me alone!"

"And of course, with your kids' extended family they'll be more than safe here," Caroline laughed as she leaned against the wall to look inside the house.

"But they're extremely powerful, Caroline."

"Pfff. A little competition with my two girls is healthy. They're the last of the Gemini coven, you know. Super duper powerful but we've managed to get them under control and focused. We can handle three Mikaelson witches, trust me. Rarities are fun."

"They're not a science project."

"Of course not! They're going to be extra taken care of, that's all. You and Kol are always welcome during the week to attend classes with them or to have lunch with them or simply to hang around. I won't discourage you to stay here for their first month so all of you can get used to the idea of being away from each other."

Bella looked passed Caroline when she saw a familiar sight; a pig with a sweater on. "Is that Moritz? How is that idiot not dead yet?"

"Our pet pig! Unless you can turn him back now, of course. I think he's learned his lesson by now," Caroline smiled widely as she gestured to him. "But then a lot of children will be disappointed, they love Moritz."

"Nah, he can stay the way he is, it's safer for other girls."

"Good decision. Speaking of animals… we found Silas and Amara the other week. They died of natural causes but their offspring and the rest of their family is still around Mystic Falls. It's so awesome to see so many black swans in one place."

"I may have a tortoise and a rat for you to have here as well, if you'd like. That is, if Klaus or Myriam hasn't killed them yet."

"Yeah, that would be awesome," Caroline laughed. "Just think about our school, Bella. We're more than happy to work with Selene from here and your children in New Orleans, but there is no better place than here."

"Oh, it's not me you need to convince. Children need to be able to go to school, period. I need to convince Kol that it's the right thing to do and he's holding on tightly. So perhaps staying here for a month while the kids go to school here isn't such a bad idea."

"Told you," she replied as she stepped away when Bella closed the door of the guesthouse again. "How's Damon?"

"Broken, but we'll get him fixed, don't worry. I'm not going to allow him to do anything stupid and if he does, I'll just bring him back," Bella sighed as she pushed her hair out of her face. "Promise me that you won't make a spectacle out of my kids or use them as a science project."

"I promise! Doing either won't do them any good!"

"Okay," Bella smiled and hugged Caroline. "Then all that's left to do is convince my vampire. We'll make the drive down in a few days. I can't actually transport the five of us at the same time and it drains me to even do just me and Kol."

"But why?"

"Because I'm not a full Goddess, silly. I need my limitations!" Bella flashed a grin before she disappeared in a yellow mist and disappeared right in front of Kol who was in the middle of a fresh kill. "Hey!"

"Bella!" Kol whined as he fed his victim some of his blood and compelled her to go on her merry way. "What did we agree upon? Go back to the house when you come back and not me!"

"But you are my house," she said as she wiped his mouth with her sleeve and kissed his cheek. "I take it Auntie Rebekah is babysitting?"

"The kids are fast asleep, yes," he sighed as he pulled her closer. "So, tell me, how hard is it going to be to let the kids go?"

"Oh, it's going to be hard on both of us but the school is everything Damon said it would be and more. Caroline even said we could come by whenever we wanted and thinks it's a great idea if we spent the first month in my tiny guest house to adjust to not having the kids around and to see how well they'll fit in and such," she smiled at him and put her arms around his neck. "It's just boarding school. We can't keep them in a glass cage all the time."

"I think that's an excellent idea," Kol smiled at her. "And you're right, they deserve the school experience and what it's like to be around other kids who are supernatural," he then brushed her lips with his. "And we deserve a little bit of freedom too."

"Yeah?" she smiled at him. "That easy?"

"It's not that easy," he laughed. "But I don't want us to become overbearing parents, either. They'll grow older and will need to take care of themselves, I don't want them living in our basement when they're 30. Besides, we can always go to your guesthouse and spend more time with them while they're in school, right?"

"Yep."

"Yep. We're hip parents and we're totally not co-dependent with our children. We can do this. Let's do this."

 ***THE END***

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 **Author's Note:** Thank you so much to everyone for reading and reviewing this story! But this is the end of it. No tags planned, no sequels because who needs those, right? *grin* If you want to read something similar to this, go over to the shared ffnet account that I have with Meekobb called meekobuggy and start reading Between Heaven And Hell, it's also a Bella/Kol and Bella can see ghosts!

What's planned for me? Well, finishing the second part to Intermission. I'm uploading Revival as parts of Intermission and the first part is already uploaded, and I'm working on the last part now, so for the coming weeks there is still so much more to read!

I might attempt Nanowrimo this year with a Bella/Isaac (Teen Wolf).

Follow me on facebook or my website (buggyfiction dot com) for updates!

Again, thank you all for reading and reviewing!

xxx

Buggy


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